Network-connected power manager for rebooting remote computer-based appliances

ABSTRACT

A network comprises a power manager with a network agent in communication over a network with an network manager. The power manager is connected to control several intelligent power modules each able to independently control the power on/off status of several network appliances. Power-on and load sensors within each intelligent power module are able to report the power status of each network appliance to the network manager with variables in response to commands. Each intelligent power module is equipped with an output that is connected to cause an interrupt signal to the network appliance being controlled. The network manager is able to test which network appliance is actually responding before any cycling of the power to the corresponding appliance is tried.

CO-PENDING APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/375,471, filed Aug. 16, 1999, titled REMOTE POWER CONTROLSYSTEM THAT VERIFIES WHICH DEVICES WILL BE SHUT-DOWN BEFORE SUCH ACTIONIS COMMITTED TO, which in turn is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/685,436, that was filed on Jul. 23, 1996 and istitled, SYSTEM FOR READING THE STATUS AND CONTROLLING THE POWER SUPPLIESOF APPLIANCES CONNECTED TO COMPUTER NETWORKS, and now U.S. Pat. No.5,949,974, issued Sep. 7, 1999.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates generally to automatic power control and moreparticularly to remote control methods and devices to rebootcomputer-based appliances that have frozen, locked-up, crashed, orotherwise become inoperable.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Anthony Coppola describes a computer power management system in U.S.Pat. No. 4,611,289, issued Sep. 9, 1986. A uninterruptable power supplywith a limited power storage is connected to supply one or morecomputers with operating power. A power manager implemented with amicroprocessor is connected to signal the computers when power reservesare running short and a graceful shut-down should be executed. Thisallows data to be saved to disk for use later. The power manager alsosignals the computers when power conditions have been restored tonormal. The computers can signal the power manager to tell it whenbackup power can safely be cut off.

If such computers were located at some remote site and they shut down,some other means would be necessary to find out why. And if these remotecomputers were to crash or lock-up due to some software fault, the powermanager described by Coppola has no way to be commanded to power cyclethe power to any of the computers.

By at least 1991, American Power Conversion (APC) (West Kingston, RI)marketed CALL-UPS, which was a telephone-actuated remote UPS turn-onaccessory. The CALL-UPS was intended to work with the APC SMART-UPS toprotect computers from brownouts and power outages. Such CALL-UPSconnected between a remote computer's modem and the telco subscriberline outlet. When an incoming call was detected by its ring or loopcurrent, the CALL-UPS would command the SMART-UPS to turn on. This, inturn, would cause the computer to boot-up, load application software,and take the call. The power would stay up a few minutes after the callterminated so call-backs could be handled without the reboot delay.Serial data communication only progressed after the computer booted up,loaded the application software, and finished the modem handshaking. Theso-called CALL-UPS-II was introduced about February of 1994 and itenabled a locked-up LAN service to be remotely corrected by rebootingcrashed devices through an out-of-band modem link.

A very similar but much earlier arrangement is described by GuidoBadagnani, et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,051,326, issued Sep. 27, 1977. Acall ring signal is used to turn on a data terminal. Once the dataterminal completes its initialization, it sends a ready-to-receivesignal and a data conversation can begin. Another telephone-activatedpower controller is described by Vincent Busam, et al., in U.S. Pat. No.4,647,721, issued Mar. 3, 1987.

Another one like these is described by Arthur P. Ferlan, in U.S. Pat.No. 4,206,444, issued Jun. 3, 1980, and titled REMOTE POWER CONTROLLERUTILIZING COMMUNICATION LINES. The stated objective is to allow remotecomputers to turn off and be powered up only when needed. For example,when another computer calls in and wants service. But here encodedmessages are used on dedicated telephone lines, e.g., Dataphone Service.The remote verifies who is calling, and allows access only ifauthorized. If authorized, the remote computer is powered up.

A kind of alarm clock was added to this basic configuration by RaymondA. Oliva, et al., their device for controlling the application of powerto a computer is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,946, issued Oct. 20,1987. The alarm clock can turn the remote computer on and off accordingto a preset schedule.

Two of the present inventors, Carrel Ewing and Andrew Cleveland,described technology along these general lines in PCT InternationalPublication Number WO 93/10615, published May 27, 1993. This is a systemfor protecting and restarting computers and peripherals at remote siteswhich are accessible by telephone communication. They also filed U.S.patent application Ser. No. 08/061,197, on May 13, 1993, and nowabandoned, for a REMOTE POWER CONTROL SYSTEM FOR COMPUTER AND PERIPHERALEQUIPMENT. Such specifically described power-cycling to reset a remotecomputer that had become hung up.

Things have changed quite a lot since then. Computer-based appliancesare now required to be on all the time. Any down-time is costly. Butcomputers being what they are, they lock up occasionally and a power-onreset is about the only way to generate a reboot. When suchcomputer-based appliances are network servers, routers, and bridgeslocated at telco modem-farm locations, it isn't practical to send atechnician to the site to force the operating power on-off-on. Much morethan a simple phone call to a dial-up number is needed too, anaccidental reboot could cause serious damage to user's data and theservice provider's goodwill.

Enterprise networks exist to support large world-wide organizations anddepend on a combination of technologies, e.g., data communications,inter-networking equipment (frame relay controllers, asynchronoustransfer mode (ATM) switches, routers, integrated services digitalnetwork (ISDN) controllers, application servers), and network managementapplication software. Such enterprise networks can be used to support alarge company's branch offices throughout the world, and, as such, thesenetworks have become mission critical to the functioning of suchorganizations. Masses of information are routinely expected to beexchanged, and such information exchanges are necessary to carry on thedaily business of modern organizations. For example, some internationalbanks have thousands of branch offices placed throughout Europe, Asiaand the United States that each critically depend on their ability tocommunicate banking transactions quickly and efficiently with oneanother and headquarters.

A typical enterprise network uses building blocks of router and framerelay network appliances mounted in equipment racks. Such equipmentracks are distributed to remote point of presence (POP) locations in theparticular network. Each equipment rack can include frame relaycontrollers, routers, ISDN controllers, servers and modems, etc., eachof which are connected to one or more power sources. The value of POPequipment can range from $200,000 to $500,000, and the number ofindividual devices can exceed a thousand.

Many enterprises rely on an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) to keeptheir network appliances operational. Many network appliances aretypically connected to a single UPS, and this sets up a problem. When anindividual router locks up, the router's power cannot be individuallycycled on and off externally at the UPS because it is connected to amultiple power outlet. The recovery action choices available to thenetwork control center operator thus do not include being able toreinitialize the individual equipment through a power interruptionreset. The network operator could command the UPS to power cycle, butthat would reset all the other attached devices that were ostensiblyoperating normally and carrying other network traffic. Another option isto dispatch someone to the remote location to reset the locked-updevice. Neither choice is an attractive solution.

In large organizations that have come to depend heavily on enterprisenetworks, there is great pressure to develop ways to control costs andthus to improve profits. Organizational down-sizing has been usedthroughout the corporate world to reduce non-network costs, and thatusually translates to fewer technical people available in the rightplaces to support large and complex in-house global networks. Suchreduced repair staffs now rely on a combination of centralized networkmanagement tools and third-party maintenance organizations to servicetheir remote POP sites. The costs associated with dispatchingthird-party maintenance technicians is very high, and the dispatch andtravel delay times can humble the business operations over a wide areafor what seems an eternity.

Global communication network operators, located at a few centralizednetwork management centers, are relying more and more on automatednetwork management applications to analyze, process, display and supporttheir networks. An increasing number of network management softwareapplications are being marketed that use open-system standardizedprotocols. Particular network application tool software is possible toreport lists of the network appliances, by location, and can issuetrouble lists and keep track of software versions and releases. Simplenetwork management protocol (SNMP) applications are conventionally usedto issue alarms to central management consoles when remote networkappliances fail.

SNMP is conventionally used to send messages between management clientnodes and agent nodes. Management information blocks (MIBs) are used forstatistic counters, port status, and other information about routers andother network devices. GET and SET commands are issued from managementconsoles and operate on particular MIB variables for the equipmentnodes. Such commands allow network management functions to be carriedout between client equipment nodes and management agent nodes. The agentnodes can issue alert or TRAP messages to the management center toreport special events.

SNMP is an application protocol for network management services in theinternet protocol suite. SNMP has been adopted by numerous networkequipment vendors as their main or secondary management interface. SNMPdefines a client/server relationship, wherein the client program, a“network manager”, makes virtual connections to a server program, an“SNMP agent”, on a remote network device. The data base controlled bythe SNMP agent is the SNMP management information base, and is astandard set of statistical and control values. SNMP and private MIBsallow the extension of standard values with values specific to aparticular agent. Directives issued by the network manager client to anSNMP agent comprise SNMP variable identifiers, e.g., MIB objectidentifiers or MIB variables, and instructions to either GET the valuefor the identifier, or SET the identifier to a new value. Thus privateMIB variables allow SNMP agents to be customized for specific devices,e.g., network bridges, gateways, and routers. The definitions of MIBvariables being supported by particular agents are located in descriptorfiles, typically written in abstract syntax notation (ASN.1) format. Thedefinitions are available to network management client programs.

SNMP-based network management systems (NMS) can be implemented withCompaq INSIGHT MANAGER, Novell NETWARE, Hewlett-Packard OPENVIEW,Castlerock SNMPC, Banyan VINES, Artisoft LANTASTIC, Microsoft WINDOWS,SunNet GER, IBM AS/400, etc. Specific control of an agent istraditionally afforded by hardware manufacturers by supplying MIBextensions to the standardized SNMP MIB library by way of source-textfiles on floppy disks or compact disks (CD's). These MIB extensions loadon the NMS, and an assigned IP-address for the agent is entered-in by auser at the NMS. Connecting the agent and the NMS to a properlyconfigured network is usually enough to establish communications andcontrol.

In 1994, American Power Conversion (West Kingston, RI) marketed acombination of their SMART-UPS, POWERNET SNMP ADAPTER, MEASURE-UPS, andan SNMP-based management station. POWERNET SNMP agents were used togenerate traps or alarms for attention by the management station. TheSNMP agents were described as being able to supply real-time UPS statusand power-quality information, e.g., UPS run-time, utility-line voltage,and UPS current load.

In 1996, American Power Conversion was marketing their MASTERSWITCHembodiment that comprises a single rack-mountable box with eightrelay-controlled power outlets on the back apron. A built-in 10 Base-Tnetworking plug allows connection to a LAN. It further includes anembedded SNMP agent responsive to the networking plug that can controlindividual power outlets. A Telnet agent was also included. Revisions ofthe MASTERSWITCH that appeared by 2000 further included a hypertexttransfer protocol (HTTP) agent that can generate information and controlwebpages on a logged-in web browser. SNMP traps were relied on togenerate unsolicited alarm inputs. Automatic IP-address assignment isprovided by a Bootup process.

By at least 1998, American Power Conversion began marketing a “completeenterprise power management system”. A POWERNET manager controlsSMART-UPS devices over a network using SNMP. An SNMP agent is associatedwith each controlled SMART-UPS and a graphical user interface (GUI) onthe manager allows a user to see the power status of each SMART-UPS.Shutdowns and reboots of individual SMART-UPS sites are initiated fromthe GUI. The POWERNET EVENT ADAPTER converts SNMP traps into events thatare reported in a GUI, e.g., the TIVOLI ENTERPRISE CONSOLE (TEC). In1998, voltage, current, temperature, and relative humidity were beingreported, e.g., by MEASURE-UPS, and displayed in the POWERNET MANAGERGUI.

All such patents and patent applications mentioned herein areincorporated by reference.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Briefly, a power manager embodiment of the present invention comprises anetwork comprising a power manager with a network agent in communicationover a network with an network manager. The power manager is connectedto control several intelligent power modules each able to independentlycontrol the power on/off status of several network appliances. Power-onand load sensors within each intelligent power module are able to reportthe power status of each network appliance to the network manager withvariables in response to commands. Each intelligent power module isequipped with an output that is connected to cause an interrupt signalto the network appliance being controlled. The network manager is ableto test which network appliance is actually responding before anycycling of the power to the corresponding appliance is tried.

An advantage of the present invention is that a system and method areprovided that can help an operator avoid the mistake of turning on oroff the wrong network appliance in a busy equipment rack at a remotesite.

Another advantage of the present invention is that a system and methodare provided for power supply status and control.

A further advantage of the present invention is that a system and methodare provided that allows a network console operator to investigate thefunctionality of the electrical power status when a router or othernetwork device has been detected as failing.

A still further advantage of the present invention is that a system andmethod are provided for reducing the need for enterprise networkoperators to dispatch third party maintenance vendors to remoteequipment rooms and POP locations simply to power-cycle failed networkappliances.

Another advantage of the present invention is that a system and methodare provided for reducing the time it takes to restore a failed networkappliance and improving service levels.

Another advantage of the present invention is that a system and methodare provided for reducing organization losses from network downtime.

These and many other objects and advantages of the present inventionwill no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art afterhaving read the following detailed description of the preferredembodiments which are illustrated in the various drawing figures.

IN THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a first power manager systemembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of a second power manager systemembodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of a third power manager systemembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 represents a power manager system embodiment of the presentinvention, and is referred to herein by the general reference numeral100. A network management system (NMS) 102 is connected by a network 104to a remote site 106. A power controller 108 forwards operating powerthrough a sensor 110 and relay-switch 112 to a computer-based appliance114. Such operating power can be the traditional 110VAC or 220VAC powerfamiliar to consumers, or direct current (DC) battery power familiar totelephone central-office “plant” employees. A network interfacecontroller (NIC) 116 may be used to connect the computer-based appliance114 to the network 104. This would be especially true in thecomputer-based appliance 114 were a server, router, bridge, etc.

The problem to be solved by the power manager system 100 is themaintenance of the operating health of the computer-based appliance 114.Such computer-based appliance 114 is prone to freezing or crashing whereit is effectively dead and unresponsive. It is also in somemission-critical assignment that suffers during such down time. It istherefore the role and purpose of the power manager 100 to monitor thepower and environmental operating conditions in which the computer-basedappliance 114 operates, and to afford management personnel the abilityto turn the computer-based appliance 114 on and off. Such allows apower-on rebooting of software in the computer-based appliance 114 to beforced remotely from the NMS 102. The operating conditions andenvironment are preferably reported to the NMS 102 on request and whenalarms occur.

The power controller 108 further includes a network interface controller(NIC) 118 connected to a security firewall 120. If the network 104 isthe Internet, or otherwise insecure, it is important to provideprotection of a network agent 122 from accidental and/or maliciousattacks that could disrupt the operation or control of thecomputer-based appliance 114. The network agent 122 interfaces to aremote power manager 124, and it converts software commands communicatedin the form of TCP/IP datapackets 126 into signals the remote powermanager can use. For example, messages can be sent from the NMS 102 thatwill cause the remote power manager 124 to operate the relay-switch 112.In reverse, voltage, current, and temperature readings collected by thesensor 110 are collected by the remote power manager 124 and encoded bythe network agent 122 into appropriate datapackets 126. Locally, akeyboard 128 can be used to select a variety of readouts on a display130, and also to control the relay-switch 112.

The NMS 102 typically comprises a network interface controller (NIC) 132connected to a computer platform and its operating system 134. Suchoperating system can include Microsoft WINDOWS-NT, or any other similarcommercial product. This preferably supports or includes a Telnetapplication 136, a network browser 138, and/or a SNMP application 140with an appropriate MIB 142. A terminal emulation program or userterminal 144 is provided so a user can manage the system 100 from asingle console.

If the computer-based appliance 114 is a conventional piece of networkequipment, e.g., as supplied by Cisco Systems (San Jose, Calif.), therewill usually be a great deal of pre-existing SNMP management softwarealready installed, e.g., in NMS 102 and especially in the form of SNMP140. In such case it is preferable many times to communicate with thenetwork agent 122 using SNMP protocols and procedures. Alternatively,the Telnet application 136 can be used to control the remote site 106.

An ordinary browser application 138 can be implemented with MSNExplorer, Microsoft Internet Explorer, or Netscape NAVIGATOR orCOMMUNICATOR. The network agent 122 preferably includes the ability tosend http-messages to the NMS 102 in datapackets 126. In essence, thenetwork agent 122 would include an embedded website that exists at theIP-address of the remote site 106. An exemplary embodiment of a similartechnology is represented by the MASTERSWITCH-PLUS marketed by AmericanPower Conversion (West Kingston, RI).

FIG. 2 represents another power manager system embodiment of the presentinvention, and is referred to herein by the general reference numeral200. A network management system (NMS) 202 like that in FIG. 1 isconnected by a network 204 to an equipment rack 206. For example, suchrack is an industry standard 84″ tall 19″ wide RETMA rack located at amodem farm or a telco office. A typical rack 206 houses a number ofnetwork routers, switches, access servers, bridges, gateways, VPNdevices, etc., that all receive their operating power from the modemfarm or telco office. Internet Service Providers (ISP's),telecommunication carriers, and other network service providers haveinstalled thousands of such sites around the world. In one example, thetelco operating power comes from a −48V DC battery supply, and so theuse of uninterruptable power supplies (UPS) that operate on and supplyAC power would make no sense. A major supplier of the network equipmentcontemplated here is Cisco Systems (San Jose, Calif.). The CiscoONS15190 optical network IP-concentrator that operates on −48V DC poweris typical of the kind of equipment represented in FIG. 1 by a number ofnetwork-equipment units 208-212.

The problem to be solved by the power manager system 200 is themaintenance of the operating health of the network-equipment units208-212. When an individual one of the network-equipment units 208-212experience a software lock-up, or crash, it is effectively dead and willnot be responsive. A typical rack 206 can be responsible for supportinga major piece of the public Internet or a corporate extranet. It istherefore the role and purpose of the power manager 200 to monitor thepower and environmental operating conditions, and to afford managementpersonnel the ability to turn the computer-based network-equipment units208-212 on and off. Such allows a power-on rebooting of software to beforced remotely from the NMS 202. The operating conditions andenvironment are preferably reported to the NMS 202 on request and whenany alarms occur, e.g., excess temperature or load current.

Vertical space in the rack 206 is typically at a premium, so all thepossible vertical rack space is reserved to the network-equipment units208-212 and not to any power supplies or controllers. Therefore, apower-distribution strip 214 is implemented as one or two long skinnyplug strips mounted vertically in the back inside corner spaces. Itincludes a software-controlled relay-switch for each corresponding powercord set from the network-equipment units 208-212. For example, sixteenplug outlets and relay-switches each. A sensor 216 measures the totalpower entering the power-distribution strip 214, and can output volts,current, or power readings to a local display 218. The sensor alsoprovides such volts, current, or power readings, as well as ambienttemperature measurements in the top and bottom of the rack 206 to aremote power manager 220.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, thepower-distribution strip 214 associates a “tickle” signal with eachpower supply connection to corresponding ones of the network-equipmentunits 208-212. This allows a channel to be exercised and tested so asystems administrator can develop confidence that a power on-off commandwill not run amok and turn off an unintended device.

The equipment rack 206 further includes a network interface controller(NIC) 222 connected to a security firewall 224. If the network 204 isthe Internet, or otherwise insecure, it is important to provideprotection of a network agent 226 from accidental and/or maliciousattacks that could disrupt the operation or control of thenetwork-equipment units 208-212. The network agent 226 converts softwarecommands communicated in the form of TCP/IP datapackets 228 into signalsthe remote power manager can use. For example, messages can be sent fromthe NMS 202 that will cause the remote power manager 220 to operate thepower relay-switches in the power-distribution strip 214. In reverse,voltage, current, and temperature readings collected by the sensor 216are collected by the remote power manager 220 and encoded by the networkagent 226 into appropriate datapackets 228.

The NMS 202 typically comprises a network interface controller (NIC) 232connected to a computer platform and its operating system 234. Suchoperating system can include Microsoft WINDOWS-NT, or any other similarcommercial product. This preferably supports or includes a Telnetapplication 236, a network browser 238, and/or an SNMP application 240with an appropriate MIB 242. A terminal emulation program or userterminal 244 is provided so a user can manage the system 200 from asingle console.

FIG. 3 represents a third power manager system embodiment of the presentinvention, and is referred to herein by the general reference numeral300. A network management system (NMS) 302 like those in FIGS. 1 and 2is connected by a network 304 to an equipment rack 305. For example,such rack houses a number of network routers, switches, access servers,bridges, gateways, VPN devices, etc., that all receive their operatingpower from a battery bank 306 charged by a rectifier 307.

The problem to be solved by the power manager system 300 is themaintenance of the operating health of the network-equipment units308-312. When an individual one of the network-equipment units 308-312experience a software lock-up, or crash, it is effectively dead and willnot be responsive. A typical rack 305 can be responsible for supportinga major piece of the public Internet or a corporate extranet. It istherefore the role and purpose of the power manager 300 to monitor thepower and environmental operating conditions, and to afford managementpersonnel the ability to turn the computer-based network-equipment units308-312 on and off. Such allows a power-on rebooting of software to beforced remotely from the NMS 302. The operating conditions andenvironment are preferably reported to the NMS 302 on request and whenany alarms occur, e.g., excess temperature or load current.

Vertical space in the rack 305 is typically at a premium, so all thepossible vertical rack space is reserved to the network-equipment units308-312 and not to any power supplies or controllers. Therefore, apower-distribution strip 314 is implemented as one or two long skinnyplug strips mounted vertically in the back inside corner spaces. Itincludes a software-controlled relay-switch for each corresponding powercord set from the network-equipment units 308-312. For example, sixteenplug outlets and relay-switches each. A sensor 316 measures the totalpower entering the power-distribution strip 314, and can output volts,current, or power readings to a local display 318. The sensor alsoprovides such volts, current, or power readings, as well as ambienttemperature measurements in the top and bottom of the rack 305 to aremote power manager 320.

A disk 321 represents a database of user configuration information.Prior art systems required users to set all the configuration optionsone-by-one through Telnet, SNMP, or http commands. In large systems withmany configuration choices to be made, errors and other data entryproblems can develop. A model set of configurations can be published bya large user with many racks 305 to setup, all on a distribution disk321. Alternatively, once a rack 305 has been configured, itsconfiguration can be copied to disk 321 for downloading at the otherlocations.

The disk 321 can also be used to store an image that can be reloaded inthe event agent 326 or remote power manager 320 crash or have to bereplaced. Keeping such configuration information on disk 321 generallysaves on installation time and reduces error.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, thepower-distribution strip 314 associates a “tickle” signal with eachpower supply connection to corresponding ones of the network-equipmentunits 308-312. This allows a channel to be exercised and tested so asystems administrator can develop confidence that a power on-off commandwill not run amok and turn off an unintended device.

The equipment rack 305 further includes a network interface controller(NIC) 322 connected to a security firewall 324. If the network 304 isthe Internet, or otherwise insecure, it is important to provideprotection of a network agent 326 from accidental and/or maliciousattacks that could disrupt the operation or control of thenetwork-equipment units 308-312. The network agent 326 converts softwarecommands communicated in the form of TCP/IP datapackets 328 into signalsthe remote power manager can use. For example, messages can be sent fromthe NMS 302 that will cause the remote power manager 320 to operate thepower relay-switches in the power-distribution strip 314. In reverse,voltage, current, and temperature readings collected by the sensor 316are collected by the remote power manager 320 and encoded by the networkagent 326 into appropriate datapackets 328.

The NMS 302 typically comprises a network interface controller (NIC) 332connected to a computer platform and its operating system 334. A disk335 represents systems and applications software that can be loaded onthe computer platform and its operating system 334 to control thenetwork agent 326. The computer platform and its operating system 334typically include Microsoft WINDOWS-NT, or any other similar commercialproduct. This preferably supports or includes a Telnet application 336,a network browser 338, and/or an SNMP application 340 with anappropriate MIB 342. A terminal emulation program or user terminal 344is provided so a user can manage the system 300 from a single console.

Many commercial network devices provide a contact or logic-level inputport that can be usurped for the “tickle” signal. Cisco Systems routers,for example, provide an input that can be supported in software to issuethe necessary message and identifier to the system administrator. Adevice interrupt has been described here because it demands immediatesystem attention, but a polled input port could also be used.

Network information is generally exchanged with protocol data unit (PDU)messages, which are objects that contain variables and have both titlesand values. SNMP uses five types of PDUs to monitor a network. Two dealwith reading terminal data, two deal with setting terminal data, andone, the trap, is used for monitoring network events such as terminalstart-ups or shut-downs. When a user wants to see if a terminal isattached to the network, for example, SNMP is used to send out a readPDU to that terminal. If the terminal is attached, a user receives backa PDU with a value “yes, the terminal is attached”. If the terminal wasshut off, a user would receive a packet informing them of the shutdownwith a trap PDU.

In alternative embodiments of the present invention, it may beadvantageous to include the power manager and intelligent power modulefunctions internally as intrinsic components of an uninterruptable powersupply (UPS). In applications where it is too late to incorporate suchfunctionally, external plug-in assemblies are preferred such thatoff-the-shelf UPS systems can be used.

Once a user has installed and configured the power manager, it isnecessary to establish a connection to the power manager. About anyterminal or terminal emulation program can be chosen for use with thepower manager.

For modem access, the communication software is launched that supportsANSI or VT100 terminal emulation to dial the phone number of theexternal modem attached to the power manager. When the modems connect, auser should see a “CONNECT” message. A user then presses the enter keyto send a carriage return.

When setting up the power manager for the first time, the first modemcall made to the power manager should be made with the dialing modem setto 9600 bits per second (BPS), which is the factory default modem datarate for the power manager. This should guarantee that the firstconnection will succeed, after which the power manager's modeminitialization data rate can be increased with the “SET MODEM RATE”command and the dialing modem's data rate can be increased in thecommunication software

For direct RS-232C access, a user starts any serial communicationsoftware that supports ANSI or VT100 terminal emulation. The programmust configure the serial port to one of the supported data rates(38400, 19200, 9600, 4800, 2400, 1200, and 300 BPS), along with noparity, 8 data bits, and one stop bit, and must assert its Device Readysignal (DTR or DSR). A user then presses the Enter key to send acarriage return.

For Ethernet Network Connections, a user connects to the power managerby using a TELNET program and connecting to the TCP/IP addressconfigured for the ServerTech MSS1 installed in the power manager. Thepower manager will automatically detect the data rate of the carriagereturn and send a username login prompt back to a user, starting asession. After the carriage return, a user will receive a banner thatconsists of the word “power manager” followed by the current powermanager version string and a blank line and then a “Username:” prompt.

Regarding “power manager Version X.Xx, Username: _”, the power managerBanner will be displayed after the initial connection or after the LOGINcommand. In response to the “Username:” prompt, a user enters a validusername string. A username is a character string up to 16 characterslong followed by a carriage return. Usernames may not contain eitherspaces or the colon “:” character. Usernames are not case sensitive. Auser has up to 60 seconds to enter a username string. If data is notentered with in the time limit, the session is ended with the followingmessage: “Sorry the time is up. Try again later!”

After a user responds to the “Username:” prompt, a user will be promptedfor an associated password with the “Password:” prompt.

Regarding “Password: _”, the power manager will not echo characterstyped in response to the password prompt. Passwords are up to 16characters and are case sensitive. Alphanumeric and other typeablecharacters (ASCII 32 to 126 decimal) may be used. The power manager willvalidate a username/password strings against the internal table ofusernames/passwords that has been previously defined. If a user entersan invalid username string or password, the power manager will send anerror message as follows: “Sorry, a username/Password a user has enteredis NOT valid!”. A user will then receive the “Username:” prompt again. Auser will have three chances to enter a correct username/password. If avalid username/password is not specified on the third attempt, thefollowing message will be sent: “Check the Username/Password and tryagain later!”. The current user session will then be ended. As with ausername, a user has up to 60 seconds to enter a password string. Ifdata is not entered with in the time limit, the session is ended withthe following message: “Sorry the time is up. Try again later!”.

The power manager allows up to 128 usernames to be defined. The systemhas three built username/password pairs. The power manager supports atwo-level username/password scheme. There is one system-administrativelevel username (ADMN), and up to 128 general-user level usernames.

A user logged in with the administrative username (ADMN) can controlpower and make configuration changes. A user logged in with a generalusername can control power. Also, while a user logged in with theadministrative username can control power to all IPMs, a user logged inwith a general username may be restricted to controlling power to aspecific IPM or set of IPMs, as configured by the administrator.

There are three built in usernames and passwords: Username: admnPassword: admn Username: gen1 Password: gen1 Username: gen2 Password:gen2

These usernames cannot be deleted and by default all three have accessto all IPMs. The “admn” username is the administrative username. Thesedefault usernames are able to view the status of all ports in the powermanager chain even if they do not have access to the IPMs for turningpower on and off. Newly added usernames can view the status of ports towhich they have power on and off access. This means that a user loggedin with any of the three default usernames can determine the numberports in a power manager by issuing the STATUS command (described laterin this manual) because the status of all ports will be reported. A userlogged in with a non-default username will be able to view the status ofports to which a username has power on and off access.

When logging in for the first time, the system administrator should usethe default administrative username. This will allow the systemadministrator to configure all the options, as well as to change thedefault passwords. Changing the passwords is done using the “SETPASSWORD” command from the command prompt. The command as well as theother administrative commands are described in the next section.

The command prompt interface is used for both power control andconfiguration of some options, including adding/deleting usernames,changing passwords and changing the modem initialization data rate. Fromthe command prompt, power control actions can be applied to individualIPMs or to a group of IPMs.

All configuration changes made at the command prompt are saved tonon-volatile RAM and are effective immediately.

Once a valid username and password has been entered, the power managerCommander displays a command prompt, “power manager: _”.

To get a display of available commands, press enter at the power managerprompt, which will show power manager commands are “CONNECT LOGIN OFF ONQUIT REBOOT RESYNC SET ADD DEL LIST SHOW STATUS VERS”.

The RESYNC, SET, ADD, DEL, and LIST commands will be available whenlogged in with the administrative-level password. In addition the SHOWcommand will be available if the administrator grants SHOW privileges toa username. By default the gen1 and gen2 usernames have SHOW privileges.New usernames do not have SHOW privileges unless specifically granted bythe administrator via the SET SHOW command described later in thismanual.

The port name and group parameters in the OFF, ON, REBOOT, and STATUScommands are user-defined names from the Power Control Screens. MultipleIPMs or groups can be specified, each separated by a space, up to 50characters. In addition port names may be specified as absolute portnames. Preceding the port name with a period specifies an absolute portname (“. ”). Appending the power manager Board letter (e.g., “A” for thefirst board, “B” for the second board, etc. with the port number on thespecific board creates the absolute port names. For example, the thirdport on the third power manager Board in the chain of boards would havean absolute port name of “.C3”. If the chain of power manager Boards isaltered for any reason, the absolute port names change. For example, ifthe second board in the chain is removed (perhaps it fails), and whatused to be the third board is now connected to the first board (it isnow the second board in the chain), then the absolute port names on thenew board change from “C1, C2, C3, C4 to B1, B2, B3, B4”. An absoluteport name always refers to a single port on a single board.

“OFF {Port Name|Group|ALL} [{Port Name|Group}*]” turns off an individualIPM, a predefined group of IPMs, or all IPMs for which access is allowedby the current password level. For example in, “OFF Device” the OFFcommand returns information, un port(s) turned off, m port(s) locked”.“n” indicates the number of referenced IPMs that turned off. “m”indicates the number of referenced IPMs that are locked in their currentstate either by the administrator or because the current username doesnot have access rights to that IPM. “(n+m)” is the total number of IPMsthat were referenced by the parameters.

“ON {Port Name|Group|ALL} [{Port Name|Group}*]” turns on an individualIPM, a predefined group of IPMs, or all IPMs for which access is allowedby the current password level. For example in, “ON Device”, the ONcommand returns information, “n port(s) turned on m port(s) locked”. “n”indicates the number of referenced IPMs that turned on. “m” indicatesthe number of referenced IPMs that are locked in their current stateeither by the administrator or because the current username does nothave access rights to that IPM.

“(n+m)” is the total number of IPMs that were referenced by theparameters.

“REBOOT {Port Name|Group|ALL} [{Port Name|Group}*]” turns off, pauses,and turns back on, an individual IPM, a predefined group of IPMs, or allIPMs for which access is allowed by the current password level. Thedelay before turning back on is either 15 seconds, or the Minimum-OffTime from the Power Control Screen, whichever is greater. For examplein, “REBOOT Device”, the REBOOT command returns information, n port(s)rebooted, m port(s) locked. “n” indicates the number of referenced IPMsthat were rebooted. “m” indicates the number of referenced IPMs that arelocked in their current state either by the administrator or because thecurrent username does not have access rights to that IPM. “(n+m)” is thetotal number of IPMs that were referenced by the parameters.

“STATUS {Port Name|Group|ALL} [{Port Name|Group}*]” returns the statusof an individual IPM, a predefined group of IPMS, or all IPMS. For thethree default usernames (e.g., adrn, gen1, and gen2), this command canreport the status for an IPM for which power control access is notallowed. For all other usernames this command can report status for IPMsfor which a username has power control access. For example in “STATUSDevice”, the STATUS command returns information in the form, “n port(s)on, m port(s) off”. “n” indicates the number of referenced IPMs that areon. “m” indicates the number of referenced IPMs that are off. “(n+m)” isthe total number of IPMs that were referenced by the parameters.

Regarding“SHOW[Page|MODEM] [CONNECT|[SWITCH|MODEM|LINK|CONSOLE|NETWORK|]”, with no parameter or with a page name, this commandputs the power manager Commander into the screen oriented interfacemode. With no parameter specified, display starts at the Power ControlScreen of the first four power modules. If a page name is specified,display starts at the Power Control Screen with that page name.

With the MODEM parameter, a page is displayed that shows the currentmodem data rate and the current status of the modem initializationstrings.

With the CONNECT parameter, one of the five serial port names listedabove must be specified. The SHOW CONNECT command displays the currentsetting of DSR and CTS checking for the specified serial port name.

The SHOW command is always available to the default usernames (e.g.,admn, gen1 and gen2). By default new usernames are not allowed to usethe SHOW command. The administrator (e.g., admn username) may add anddelete SHOW command privileges to other usernames using the SET SHOWcommand.

The “CONNECT(116|SerialPortName|IPMName|CONSOLE|MODEMI|LIN K|NETWORK”command attempts to make a connection to a serial device attached to oneof the four pass-through ports (CONSOLE, MODEM, LINK or NETWORK) or toone of 4 side switch ports that are identified by the power manager PortName of the IPM (IPM Name) on the board. That is, the first side switchport is identified by the Port Name of the first IPM, the second sideswitch port is identified by the PORT Name of the second IPM, etc. TheCONNECT command can also be used to connect to 1 of 16 possible serialports that are connected on the LINK port at the end of a chain of powermanagers. If the CONNECT command is entered with a single parameterwhich is a number from 1 to 16, the connection is attempted to one ofthe ports attached to the LINK port at the end of the chain.

To ease the use of the CONNECT command, an administrator can configureany of the possible serial ports that are available with names. TheCONNECT command can then be used with the assigned name (e.g., theSerial Port Name parameter) to connect to the port associated with theSerial Port Name. When the CONNECT command is used with a Serial PortName or with a number from 1 to 16 as a parameter, the IPM accessrestrictions do not apply. All users can use the CONNECT command toconnect to any serial port that has a Serial Port Name or is accessedwith a number from 1 to 16.

If the CONNECT command is entered with no parameters, a list of possiblenames is displayed on the screen. A user can then use the CONNECTcommand with one of the names displayed to attempt a serial portconnection. The administrator can use the ADD, DEL, and LIST commands toset up the Serial Port Name configuration.

For all CONNECT commands, the power manager defaults to requiring thatthe attached device assert both Data Set Ready (DSR) and Clear To Send(CTS), in order to successfully connect. These requirements can beindividually enabled and disabled with the “SET CONNECT” command. When aconnection is successful, the message “Connection complete” will bedisplayed, at which point communication to the attached device will betransparent through the power manager.

When finished communicating to the serial device, type “!*login<CR>”.The keyword “login” is not case sensitive. This disconnection charactersequence returns a user to the login username prompt at which point auser may login normally to the power manager.

A disconnection will also automatically occur when CD or DSR go inactive(as caused by hanging up a modem or exiting a communications program) orwhen a Telnet session is disconnected.

LOGIN brings up the “Username::” prompt to allow a user to re-loginunder a different username. No parameters.

RESYNC ends the session and resynchronizes the chain of boards. Thiscommand should be issued after adding or removing a board from the chainif all of the chain is not accessible. This is an administrative-levelcommand.

VERS displays the firmware version of the first power manager Commanderin the chain. No parameters.

QUIT ends the session. No parameters.

Set commands are available when logged in with the administrativeusername (e.g., admn). To get a display of available SET commands, enter“SET” at the power manager prompt, which will show SET commands are“CONNECT LOCATION MODEM PANEL PASSWORD SHOW SCREEN TEMPH TEMPL, LOADLLOADH ENABLET DISABLET”.

“SET CONNECT {SWITCH|CONSOLE|MODEM|LINK|NETWORK},{DSRCHECK|NODSRCHECK|CTSCHECK|NOCTSCHECK}” turns on or off active signalchecking when connecting to a pass-through port when using the CONNECTcommand. There are two required parameters with the command. The firstis one of five possible serial port names. The SWITCH serial port nameis for the side-switch connection. All four of the possible side-switchconnections are controlled by setting the SWITCH serial port. It is notpossible to set individual side-switch connections to different signalvalues.

DSRCHECK requires that DSR be active from the attached device toconnect. NODSRCHECK ignores that state of DSR. CTSCHECK requires thatCTS be active from the attached device to connect. NOCTSCHECK ignoresthat state of CTS. The defaults are DSRCHECK and CTSCHECK.

“SET LOCATION {Location}” sets the location description field of thePower Control Screen for the entire power manager Commander chain. Thisis an alternative to entering the location description on each PowerControl Screen, which allows each Power Control Screen to have a uniquename. With this command, spaces can be entered in the description,whereas editing the location description from the Power Control Screendoes not. The location field of the first Power Control Screen isdisplayed as part of a “Welcome to . . . ” message when a session isstarted. Up to 16 characters, including spaces, can be entered. Extracharacters will be truncated from the location field.

Regarding“SETMODEM{RATE{NONE|300|1200|2400|4800|9600|192 00|38400}}, SETMODEM {{INIT1|INIT2|INIT2|ATTENTION|HANGUP} {DEFAULT|NONE}}”, SET MODEMRATE sets the initialization data rate for the modem attached to thepower manager. The data rate can be set to any of the listed speeds(300, 1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, or 38400 Bits Per Second). The NONEparameter is used to disable all modem initialization string support.The default is 9600 BPS. The initialization takes place at a userselectable data rate, with no parity, 8 data bits, and one stop bit.

SET MODEM INIT1, INIT2, INIT3, ATTENTION, or HANGUP allows an individualmodem initialization string to be enabled (DEFAULT) or disabled (NONE).All default to enabled (DEFAULT).

The power manager initializes the modem when the power manager is firstturned on, whenever the modem is turned on or connected and after everyuser session (via modem) with the power manager. During initialization,the power manager sends each of the five-fixed modem initializationstrings that is enabled to the modem in the order:

-   -   Attention String: @@@    -   Hang-up String: ATH<CR>    -   Initialization String 1: AT<CR>    -   Initialization String 2: AT E0 Q1 S0=3 S2=64 S12=50 & C1 &        D2<CR>    -   Initialization String 2: AT S0=1<CR>

The Attention String is sent to break from online mode to command modeif a modem is connected. The attention string can be set on most modemsto match the @@@ string used by the power manager.

The Hang-up String is sent to cause the modem to hang up if there is anactive connection.

Initialization String 1 is sent to alter the modem and to allow themodem time to prepare for the next command.

Initialization String 2 is sent to initialize the modem to defaultsrequired by the power manager. The “E0” turns off the echoing of data,the “Q1” turns off result codes and the “S0=3” sets the modem to answeron the 3^(rd) ring.

Initialization String 3 is sent to set the modem to answer on the 1^(st)ring. The modem initialization features allow a choice for the modem toanswer on either ring number 1 or ring number 3. The InitializationString 3 is “AT S0=1<CR>”. Like the other initialization strings,Initialization String 3 defaults to being enabled, and is sent insequence after Initialization String 2. When this happens the modemanswers on ring number 1. To have the modem instead answer on ringnumber 3, disable Initialization String 3 with the command “SET MODEMINIT3 NONE”.

For most modems, Initialization String 1 or 2 being sent by the powermanager to the modem at one of the supported data rates is all that isneeded for the modem to work with the power manager. This is becausemost modems will communicate to the attached serial device (in thiscase, the power manager) at the data rate of the last AT command thatwas sent to it. A modem that operates in this manner is operating infixed data rate mode. Since the power manager sends the last AT commandat one of its supported data rates, the modem will talk back to thepower manager at that same data rate when it is on-line with anothermodem.

Some high-speed modems, however, can be configured to operate invariable data rate mode. With a modem set to operate in variable datarate mode, when the modems connect, the modem may change from the speedof the last AT command to a different data rate, automatically adjustingto a data rate that is best for the actual modem-to-modem connect speed.If the data rate changes to one of the supported data rates, then thepower manager Commander will be able to communicate. But, if the datarate changes to a non-supported data rate, such as 14400, 28800, orfaster than 38400 BPS, the power manager Commander will not be able tocommunicate. Thus, it is best that the modem be configured to operate infixed data rate mode, NOT variable data rate mode.

Configuring the modem to operate in fixed data rate mode is notaddressed by the modem initialization built into the power managerCommander because the command that sets the modem to use fixed data ratemode varies significantly with different modem manufacturers.

If the modems are able to connect with each other, but there is notcommunication with the power manager Commander, the modem attached tothe power manager is probably in variable data rate mode and hasswitched to an unsupported speed. In this case, in the modem's manual,lookup the appropriate AT command(s) for the modem to operate in fixeddata rate mode. Then attach the modem to a PC with a terminal program,send the command(s) to the modem, followed by an &W to write the newsetting to the modem's memory and make it the default, and thenre-attach the modem to the power manager.

“SET PANEL {NONE|DEFAULT}” changes the operational behavior of the frontpanel pushbuttons. NONE disables the pushbuttons. DEFAULT sets thefront-panel pushbuttons to cycle through 2-states (ON and OFF) fornon-Shutdown ports, and three states (ON, Shutdown, and OFF) forShutdown ports. This is the default operating mode from the factory.

The “DEFAULT” option supports locking a port in the on or off state bypressing and holding the port's pushbutton for two seconds, at whichpoint the LED above will flicker rapidly. If the port is on, this actionwill lock the port on. If the port is off, this action will lock theport off. To unlock a port, again press and hold the port's pushbuttonfor two seconds is a the port will stay in the same on or off state, itwill be unlocked again.

When a port is locked, the power state of the port can not be changedremotely by a user. A user logged in with the “admn” username, however,can lock or unlock a port remotely from the Power Control Screen bypositioning the cursor in the column of the target port, and thenpressing “L” to lock or “U” to unlock the port.

Regarding “SET PASSWORD [username]”, the SET PASSWORD command is used tochange the password of any username. A user may specify a username forwhich the password is to be changed as a parameter to the SET PASSWORDcommand or he may enter the SET PASSWORD command with no parameters. Ifa user enters the SET PASSWORD command without specifying a username,the system will prompt a user for a username with the following prompt:“Username:”. If a valid username is not specified either as a parameteron the SET PASSWORD command or in response to the “Username:” prompt,the following message is displayed: “Sorry, a username a user hasentered is NOT valid!”, and the SET PASSWORD command is terminated. If auser enters a valid username he is prompted for the new password andalso for a verification of the new password. A user must specify thecurrent password in order to change the password for the administratorusername (e.g., admn). For all other usernames the password is changedwithout having to first specify the existing password. The password cannot contain more than 16 characters or the command is aborted with thefollowing message: “Sorry, the password a user has entered is NOTvalid!”. The following message is displayed when the password ischanged: “Password successfully changed”.

The power manager will echo the “*” character for all characters enteredby a user for passwords when using the SET PASSWORD command. Thisincludes the new password, the verification of the new password and theverification of the existing password in the case of changing the ADMNpassword.

Regarding “SET SHOW [username] [ON|OFF]”, the SET SHOW command is usedto enable or disable SHOW command access for a username. The SET SHOWcommand can be entered with no parameters, with a single parameter(which is a username) or with two parameters (which are usernamefollowed by “on” or “off” to indicate the SHOW command is to be enabledor disabled). If a parameter is not specified, a user is prompted firstfor a user name with the “Username:” message followed by a prompt forthe “on” or “off” specification with the “Specify ON or OFF:” message.If a user does not specify a valid username in response to the“Username:” prompt, the command aborts with the following message:“Sorry, a username a user has entered is NOT valid!”. If a user enters asingle parameter, the “Specify ON or OFF:” prompt occurs. If a userspecifies both a username and “on”/“off” parameters there is noprompting. The appropriate error message is issued and the commandaborted if a username is invalid, regardless if the “on”/“off” value isspecified as a parameter on the command line or is entered in responseto a prompt. If the command completes successfully, the followingmessage is displayed: “Show command enabled/disabled for USERNAME”. Inthis message, USERNAME is replaced by the specified username and eitherenabled or disabled is displayed depending on the action taken.

Regarding “SET SCREEN {NOCONFIRM|CONFIRM]”, the SET SCREEN command isused to enable or disable a confirmation message when using the powermanager full screen interface. When the CONFIRM option is set a user isprompted with an “Are the sure? (Y/“N”)”message when making changes viathe SHOW command screen. When the NOCONFIRM option is set changes aremade immediately. This command changes the confirm option on all boardsin a power manager chain.

The following SET commands are used to set parameters pertaining to SNMPtraps that can be generated by power managers. Not all power managerhardware support all SNMP traps. Some of these commands use Board Nameas a parameter. The Board Name is the name specified in the Page fieldof the SHOW command full screen interface. In addition to specifying themnemonic name from the SHOW command page field, a user may specify anabsolute Board Name by preceding the Board Name with a period (“.”).Appending the power manager Board letter (e.g., “A” for the first board,“B” for the second board, etc. to the leading period creates theabsolute Board Names. For example, the third power manager Board in thechain of boards would have an absolute Board Name of “.C”. If the chainof power manager Boards is altered for any reason, the absolute BoardNames change. For example, if the second board in the chain is removed(perhaps it fails), and what used to be the third board is now connectedto the first board (it is now the second board in the chain), then theabsolute Board Name on the new board changes from “.C to .B”. Anabsolute Board Name always refers to a single port on a single board.

The “SET TEMPH. [Board Name|ALL] [value]” command is used to set theSNMP temperature trap high limit. The SET TEMPH command takes twooptional parameters. The first is the Board Name. If the Board Nameparameter is not specified on the command line the power manager promptsfor the Board Name with the “Board:” prompt. A user may specify anabsolute Board Name, a mnemonic Board Name from the SHOW command pagefield or the keyword ALL to cause all boards in the chain to be modifiedby the command.

The second parameter is the temperature limit value to be set. The valueis in degrees Celsius and may be any value from 1 to 125. If the valueis not specified on the command line, the power manager prompts for thevalue with the “Temperature:” prompt. If the value specified is notwithin the proper range, the following error message is displayed:“Invalid Temperature Valid range 1 to 125”.

When the command completes the following message is displayed “LimitValue Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s) Command CompletedSuccessfully!”. The “X” in the message indicates the number of boardsmodified by the command.

The “SET TEMPL [Board Name|ALL] [value]” command is used to set the SNMPtemperature trap low limit. The SET TEMPL command takes two optionalparameters. The first is the Board Name. If the Board Name parameter isnot specified on the command line the power manager prompts for theBoard Name with the “Board:” prompt. A user may specify an absoluteBoard Name, a mnemonic Board Name from the SHOW command page field orthe keyword ALL to cause all boards in the chain to be modified by thecommand.

The second parameter is the temperature limit value to be set. The valueis in degrees Celsius and may be any value from 1 to 125. If the valueis not specified on the command line, the power manager prompts for thevalue with the “Temperature:” prompt. If the value specified is notwithin the proper range, the following error message is displayed:“Invalid Temperature Valid range 1 to 125”.

When the command completes the following message is displayed “LimitValue Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s) Command CompletedSuccessfully! ”. The “X” in the message indicates the number of boardsmodified by the command.

The “SET LOADH [Port Name|Group|ALL] [value]” command is used to set theSNMP load sense trap high limit. The SET LOADH command takes twooptional parameters. The first is the Port Name. If the Port Nameparameter is not specified on the command line the power manager promptsfor the Port Name with the “Port Name:n prompt.

The second parameter is the amps limit value to be set. The amps valuemay be any value from 1 to 60. If the value specified is not within theproper range, the following error message is displayed: “Invalid AmpsValue Valid range 1 to 60”.

When the command completes the following message is displayed “LimitValue Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s) Command CompletedSuccessfully!”. The ““X” in the message indicates the number of powermanager ports modified by the command.

The “SET LOADL [Port Name|Group|ALL] [value]” command is used to set theSNMP load sense trap low limit. The SET LOADL command takes two optionalparameters. The first is the Port Name. If the Port Name parameter isnot specified on the command line the power manager prompts for the PortName with the “Port Name:” prompt.

The second parameter is the amps limit value to be set. The amps valuemay be any value from 1 to 60. If the value specified is not within theproper range, the following error message is displayed: “Invalid AmsValue Valid range 1 to 60”.

When the command completes the following message is displayed “LimitValue Set Successfully on X unit(s)/port(s) Command CompletedSuccessfully!”. The “X” in the message indicates the number of powermanager ports modified by the command.

The “SET EABLET {STRT|TEMP|MSTA|CSTA|LOAD} [Port Name|BoardName|Group|ALL]” command is used to enable an SNMP trap. The SET ENABLETcommand takes two parameters. The first is the type of trap to beenabled. There are four types of traps that are supported by the powermanager, STRT is a trap generated when the power manager is started orresynchronized; TEMP is a trap generated when the power managertemperature probe senses a temperature too; MSTA is a trap generatedwhen an IPM indicates an error (Module STAus error); and, CSTA is a trapgenerated when a power change occurs (Control STAus change).

LOAD is a trap generated when the load on an IPM is too. If the firstparameter is not specified the command does not complete.

The second parameter is the Board Name for board wide traps (e.g., STRTand TEMP) and is the Port Name for IPM specific traps (e.g., MSTA, CSTAand LOAD). If the Board Name parameter is not specified on the commandline the power manager prompts for the Boar Name with the “Board:”prompt. If the Port Name parameter is not specified on the command linethe power manager prompts for the Port Name with the “Port Name:”prompt.

When the command completes the following message is displayed “TrapEnabled/disabled on X unit(s)/port(s) Command Completed Successfully!”.The “X” in the message indicates the number of boards or ports for whichthe specified trap is enabled or disabled by the command.

The “SET DISABLET{STRT|TEMP|MSTA|CSTA|LOAD} [Port Name|BoardName|Group|ALL]” command is used to disable an SNMP trap. The SETDISABLET command takes two parameters. The first is the type of trap tobe disabled. There are four types of traps that are supported by thepower manager. They are:

-   -   STRT is a trap generated when the power manager is started or        resynchronized.    -   TEMP is a trap generated when the power manager temperature        probe senses a temperature too.    -   MSTA is a trap generated when an IPM indicates an error (Module        STAus error).    -   CSTA is a trap generated when a power change occurs (Control        STAus change).

LOAD is a trap generated when the load on an IPM is too. If the firstparameter is not specified the command does not complete.

The second parameter is the Board Name for board wide traps (e.g., STRTand TEMP) and is the Port Name for IPM specific traps, e.g., MSTA, CSTAand LOAD. If the Board Name parameter is not specified on the commandline the power manager prompts for the Board Name with the “Board:”prompt. If the Port Name parameter is not specified on the command linethe power manager prompts for the Port Name with the “Port Name:”prompt.

When the command completes the following message is displayed “TrapEnabled/disabled on X unit(s)/port(s) Command Completed Successfully!”.The “X” in the message indicates the number of boards or ports for whichthe specified trap is enabled or disabled by the command.

Regarding “LIST TRAP [Board Name|ALL]”, the LIST TRAP command is used tolist the current SNMP trap settings on one or more boards in a chain ofboards. The LIST command is also used to list usernames and ports andthese functions are described in a username/password administrationsection of this manual.

The LIST TRAP command takes a single parameter that is the name of theboard to be listed. If this parameter is omitted, the power managerprompts for the board name with the “Board:” prompt. If a user specifiesand absolute board name (e.g., a period “.” followed by a letter),information on that specific board will be displayed. If a mnemonic nameis entered, the command will display information on all boards with thatboard name with a “Press: “N”) exet, “Q”)uit:” prompt between boarddisplays. The following is an example of the display that is returned bythe LIST TRAP command, TRAP INFORMATION FOR UNIT: .A power manager StartUp Trap: [X] Temperature Error Trap: [X] Temperature High Limit: 50 DegC. Temperature Low Limit: 1 Deg C. .A1 .A2 .A3 .A4 Control Status Trap[X] [X] [X] [X] Module Status Trap [X] [ ] [ ] [ ] Device Load Trap [X][ ] [ ] [ ] Load High Limit 4 4 4 4 Load Low Limit 1 1 1 1 Press:“N”)ext, “Q”)uit: n

The display begins with a line that prints the absolute board name forthe board being displayed. Then a line is displayed that indicateswhether the Start Up trap (STRT) and the Temperature trap (TEMP) areactive on this board. An “X” between the brackets means the trap isactive. Even if the Start Up trap is active, start up traps aregenerated on the first board in the chain of boards.

The next line shows the current Temperature trap limits for this board.Following the temperature limits, is a four column matrix that showswhich traps are enabled for which ports on this board. An “X” betweenthe brackets corresponding to the trap and the port indicates the trapis active. Only the absolute port names are displayed. Following theenabled/disabled display for the traps, is a display of the currentdevice load high and low limits for each of the four ports on thisboard. Finally, a prompt to continue with the next board or quit isdisplayed. When the command is complete a “Port List Complete” messageis printed.

Username/password and Serial Port Name administration commands areavailable when logged in with the administrative username (e.g., admn).These commands are used to add/delete users, to allow/disallow access topower manager IPMs for usernames and to view the current usernames andtheir associated IPM access. They are also used to assign names to thevarious serial ports that can be accessed via the CONNECT command.

Regarding “ADD (USER|PORT|SNAME} [Username|Serial Port ID] [PortName|Serial Port Name]”, the ADD command is used to add usernames to thesystem, to add Serial Port Names, and to add port access to a username.The ADD command takes one required parameter and up to two optionalparameters.

The first parameter is required and indicates whether a username is tobe added (ADD USER) or whether port access is to be granted to a user(ADD PORT), or whether a Serial Port Name is to be added (ADD SNAME).

The ADD USER command is used to add a new username to the system. Thecommand can be entered with a single parameter (which is the newusername) or with no parameters. If a parameter is not specified, a useris prompted for a username with the following prompt: Uusername:”. Anon-blank username that contains no more than 16 characters, and doesnot contain the colon “:” character, must be entered at this prompt orthe command is aborted with the following message: “Sorry, a username auser has entered is NOT valid!”. A username is not case sensitive.

Once a username is specified, a user is prompted for a password via the“Password:” message. A user is prompted for a verification of the newlyentered password after entering the password. The verification passwordmust match the first password entered or the command is aborted with thefollowing message: “Sorry, the password a user has entered is NOTvalid!”. The “*” character is echoed in response to the characters typedfor the password and the password verification strings. The passwordvalue entered at this prompt and successfully verified is stored as thepassword for this username and is used to validate this username duringnormal power manager logon processing. The password can not contain morethan 16 characters or the command is aborted with the following message:“Sorry, the password a user has entered is NOT valid!”. The password iscase sensitive.

Once the information has been entered, a user receives the followingmessage: “Username successfully added”. Note that a value in a usernameis required in this command. Blank or empty responses to the passwordprompt and the password verification prompt are accepted as valid.

By default, a new user does not have access to any resources on thepower manager Board, and cannot use the SHOW command. To allow a user toaccess a power module or a communications connection, the ADD PORTcommand must be used. To allow a user to use the SHOW command the SETSHOW command must be used.

The ADD PORT command is used to allow a username to access a port in thepower manager Board chain. The specified port name gives access to boththe power module and the communications port referenced by the portname. The command can be entered with no parameters, with a singleparameter (which is a username) or with two parameters (which areusername followed by the port name). If a parameter is not specified, auser is prompted first for a user name with the “Username:” messagefollowed by a prompt for the port name with the following prompt: “portName:”. If a user does not specify a valid username in response to the“Username:” prompt, the command aborts with the following message:“Sorry, a username a user has entered is NOT valid!”. A non-blank portname must be entered after the “Port Name:” or the command is abortedwith the following message: “Sorry, the port name a user has entered isNOT valid!”. The same message is produced if the power manager does notrecognize the port name. If a user enters a single parameter, the portname prompt occurs. If a user specifies both a username and port nameparameters there is no prompting. The appropriate error messages areissued and the command aborted if either a username or port name isinvalid, regardless if the value is specified as a parameter on thecommand line or is entered in response to a prompt. If the commandcompletes successfully, the following message is displayed: “Access toPORTNAME is granted to USERNAME”. In this message PORTNAME is replacedby the specified port name and USERNAME is replaced by the specifiedusername.

The PORTNAME specified in this command can be an absolute port name, auser created port name, or a group port name.

The ADD SNAME command is used to add a new name to a serial port in apower manager chain. The command can be entered with no parameters, witha single parameter (which is the serial port ID -identifies which portis to be named) or with two parameters (which are the serial port IDfollowed by the serial port name). If a parameter is not specified, auser is prompted first for the serial port ID with the “Serial Port ID:”message followed by a prompt for the serial port name with the followingprompt: “Name:”. If a user does not specify a valid serial port name inresponse to the “Name:” prompt, the command aborts with the followingmessage: “The serial port name a user has entered is NOT valid!”. Validserial port names are from 1 to 16 characters with blanks not allowed.

In response to the “Serial Port ID:” prompt, a user may enter either anumber from 1 to 16 (to specify one of the 16 possible ports connectedat the end of the chain), or a two character pass through portidentifier that begins with a letter and is followed by a number from 1to 4. The parameter is verified to ensure the serial port exists andthat the serial port is not already named. If the specified serial portis already named, it must first be deleted using the DEL command andthen added.

Regarding “DEL {USER|PORT|SNAME} [Username|Serial Port NAME] [PortName]”, the DEL command is used to delete usernames from the system, todelete Serial Port Names, and to delete access to ports for a specificusername. The DEL command takes one required parameter and up to twooptional parameters.

The first parameter is required and indicates whether a username is tobe deleted (DEL USER) or whether port access is to be removed from auser (DEL PORT), or whether a Serial Port Name is to be deleted (DELSNAME).

The DEL USER command is used to remove a username from the system. Thecommand can be entered with a single parameter (which is a username toremove) or with no parameters. If a parameter is not specified, a useris prompted for a username with the following prompt: “Username:”. Avalid system username must be entered at this prompt or the command isaborted with the following message: “Sorry, a username a user hasentered is NOT valid!”. This command cannot be used to remove any of thethree default usernames (e.g., admn, gen1, or gen2).

When the DEL USER command completes successfully, a user receives“Username successfully deleted”. A successful DEL USER command causesaccess to all ports for the specified user to be removed.

The DEL PORT command is used to remove access for a username to a portin the power manager Board chain. The command can be entered with noparameters, with a single parameter (which is a username) or with twoparameters (which are username followed by the port name or by thekeyword “ALL” to indicate access to all ports should be removed). If aparameter is not specified, a user is prompted first for a user namewith the “Username:” message followed by a prompt for the port name withthe following prompt: “Port Name:”. If a user does not specify a validusername in response to the “Username:” prompt, the command aborts withthe following message: “Sorry, a username a user has entered is NOTvalid!”. A valid port name must be entered after the “Port Name:” or thecommand is aborted with the following message: “Sorry, the port name auser has entered is NOT valid!”. A user may enter the keyword “ALL” inresponse to the “Port Name:” prompt, in which case access to all portsfor this username is removed. If a user enters a single parameter, theport name prompt occurs. If a user specifies both a username and portname parameters there is no prompting. The appropriate error messagesare issued and the command aborted if either a username or port name isinvalid, regardless if the value is specified as a parameter on thecommand line or is entered in response to a prompt. If the commandcompletes successfully, the following message is displayed: “Access toPORTNAME is denied to USERNAME”. In this message PORTNAME is replaced bythe specified port name (or the keyword “ALL”) and USERNAME is replacedby the specified username. Note that access for the administrator cannotbe removed.

The DEL SNAME command is used to remove a serial port name. The commandcan be entered with no parameters, or with a single parameter (which isthe serial port name). If a parameter is not specified, a user isprompted first for the serial port name with the “Name:” message. If auser does not specify a valid serial port name in response to the“Name:” prompt, the command aborts with the following message: “Theserial port name a user has entered is NOT valid!”.

Regarding “LIST {USER|USERS|PORT|PORTS|SNAME} [Username|Port Name]” theLIST command is used to list the current usernames active in the powermanager system with their current SHOW command access and the ports towhich a username has access, to list the current users allowed access tothe system ports, and to list the currently defined Serial Port Names.

The LIST command can be used to list all users in the system (LISTUSERS), to list a single user and all ports to which the specified userhas access (LIST USER), to list all ports in the power manager chain andall users with access to all ports (LIST PORTS), and to list a singleport and all users with access to that port (LIST PORT).

The LIST USER command is used to display information about a singleuser. This information includes a list of all ports on the system towhich a user has access and whether the SHOW command is enabled ordisabled for a user. The command can be entered with a single parameter(which is a username to list) or with no parameters. If a parameter isnot specified, a user is prompted for a username with the followingprompt: “Username:”. A valid system username must be entered at thisprompt or the command is aborted with the following message: “Sorry, ausername a user has entered is NOT valid!”.

If a valid username is specified the following message is displayed:Active Port List for Username XXXXXX Show command enabled/disabled.

In the above message XXXXXX is replaced by a username and either enabledor disabled is displayed depending on the status of the SHOW command forthis username.

After the header message is displayed, a list of all ports to which ausername has access is displayed. The absolute port name is displayed,followed by a user defined port name (if there is one) followed by thegroup name (if there is one). If the list of ports fills a screen, auser is prompted to press “N” for additional names or “Q” to end thelist. The following is an example of the screen display, .A1 PortA1GroupA1 .A2 PortA2 GroupA1 .Z4 PortZ4 GroupA1 Press: “N”)ext, “Q”)uit

All ports will have at least the absolute port name displayed; however auser assigned port name and the group name may or may not be presentbased on the configuration of the port.

The LIST USERS command is used to display a list of all the valid userson the system along with a display of whether the SHOW command isenabled or disabled for a user. If a username list fills the screen, auser is prompted to press “N” for additional names or “Q” to end thelist. The following is an example of the LIST USERS display, admn Showcommand enabled gen1 Show command enabled gen2 Show command enabledsentry1 Show command disabled Press: “N”)ext, “Q”)uit

When all users have been listed, the following message is displayed:“Username List Complete”.

The LIST PORT command is used to display a list of all users with accessto a specific port on the system. The command can be entered with asingle parameter (which is the port name to list) or with no parameters.If a parameter is not specified, a user is prompted for the port namewith the following prompt: “Port Name:”

After a port name is specified, a list of usernames with access to theport is displayed on the screen. The port name being listed is displayedfollowed by a list of usernames. The port name is displayed as theabsolute port name followed by a user created port name (if there isone) followed by the group port name (if there is one). The followingexample illustrates the first group of a specific port name display, .C4USERPORT1 GROUPPORT1 usernames: admn gen1 gen2 sentry1 sentry2 sentry3sentry4 sentry5 sentry6 sentry7 sentry8 sentry9 sentry10 sentry11sentry12 sentry13 sentry14 sentry15 sentry16 sentry17 sentry18 sentry19sentry20 sentry21 sentry22 sentry23 sentry24 sentry25 sentry26 sentry27Press: “N”)ext, “Q”)uit

When all users for a specific port have been displayed the followingmessage is displayed: “Username List for PORT1 Complete”.

A LIST PORTS command is used to display a list of all ports on thesystem with all users with access to each port on the system. Thedisplay is the same as for a single port name list as illustrated in theLIST PORT command above, except the “N”)ext, “Q”)uit prompt is displayedafter the “Username List for PORT1 Complete” message is displayed ratherthan returning to the power manager prompt. Ports are displayed in portorder starting with absolute port .A1 and ending with the forth port onthe last board in the chain (unless a user specifies “Q” before the lastport is listed).

When all users for all ports have been listed, the following message isdisplayed: “Port List Complete”.

The LIST SNAM command is used to display the current serial port namesand the port associated with the serial port name. The command takes noparameters. The output of the LIST SNAM command is a display of thecurrent serial port names. Each serial port name is followed by theassociated power manager port for the name. The names are displayed ingroups of twenty ports. After each group of twenty ports is displayed auser is prompted to press “N” for additional names or “Q” to end thelist. The following is an example of the screen with twenty serial portnames displayed, three are listed here for illustration, TERMINALPORT.A1 NTSYSTEM .B4 LINKPORT 12 Press: “N”)ext, “Q”)uit

From the Power Control Screen, a user can control power and configurethe power manager by simply moving around the screen using the arrowkeys and pressing an action key. All configuration changes made in thePower Control Screen are saved to non-volatile RAM and are effectiveimmediately. Not all of the power manager hardware supports all of thefunctions illustrated in the descriptions. If a capability is notsupported, a user will see an ““N”/A” displayed in the field on thescreen.

A Power Control Screen is accessed by a SHOW command from a commandprompt,

power manager: SHOW

A SHOW command displays an ANSI power control screen, e.g., eightycharacters wide by twenty-four lines, Power Control System (c) ServerTechnology, Inc. 1 of 2 Location: [  ] Port Name: [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]Control Status: (x) On (x) On (x) On (x) On ( ) Off ( ) Off ( ) Off ( )Off Module Status: Normal Normal Normal Normal Device Load: 2.50A 2.50A2.50A 2.50A Minimum-On Time: 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00Minimum-Off Time: 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00 00:00:00 Shutdown Delay:Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled Wake-Up State: On On On On Group:[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] Access: All All All All Page: [ ] Temperature: 27.0 DegC. Press: C)mnd, E)dit, “N”)ext, “Q”)uit, Space-Bar to Select

Power managers can support up to twenty-six boards in a chain of boards.Each board has its own set of four intelligent power modules (IPM's).The power manager has a power control screen for each of the boards inthe power manager chain. Some modules have on board and therefore asingle power control screen. Other have multiple boards and thereforemultiple power control screens (one for each board). Each power controlscreen is considered a different page and each power control screencontrols four IPM's. The page currently being viewed is displayed in theupper right corner of the screen, as is the total number of pages. Thepage currently being viewed is also indicated by the name in the pagefield in the lower left of the screen. A help line at the bottomindicates what key presses are available for specific functions,

C) mnd puts the power manager back into Command Prompt mode at the“power manager:” prompt.

E) dit is used to edit fields enclosed by square brackets. When “E” ispressed, the cursor moves to the end of the current entry. The backspacekey erases one character. Press Enter or Tab when done editing thefield.

“N”) ext displays the next Power Control Screen page.

P) revious displays the previous Power Control Screen page.

“Q”) unit ends the current session.

S) pace-Bar to Select indicates that the space bar is used onnon-editable fields to toggle between the predetermined settings. Thespace bar is also used on the status line to change the power state of aport to the state of the current cursor location (either On or Off). Theplus and minus keys can also be used to toggle forward or backwardthrough the predetermined settings.

A Port Name is an eight character descriptive field for the deviceplugged into the IPM. This field is used both as a description and as aparameter to the ON, OFF, REBOOT, and STATUS commands.

A Control Status of the IPM is shown by a character in the On or Offfield. An “x” is displayed if the port is accessible remotely. Anasterisk is displayed if the IPM is locked on by the administrator, orif the IPM is not accessible by the current password level.

To change the power state of an IPM, the cursor is moved to the desiredstate (On or Off), and the space bar is pressed. The “x” will move tothe new state, indicating the power changed to that state.

A user can press “R” when in the On or Off field to reboot the port. Ifthe port is already off, it will turn on immediately. If it is on, itwill turn off, delay, then turn back on. The delay before turning backon is either 15 seconds, or the Minimum-Off Time, whichever is greater.During the reboot delay, an “r” is displayed in the Off field,indicating the port is going to reboot.

When in the On or Off field, a user logged in with the administrativepassword can lock or unlock a port by pressing “L” to lock, or “U” tounlock. A locked port will display an asterisk in the On or Off field,and cannot be controlled by a general user is a it can be unlocked bythe administrator.

The Module Status is an informational field that displays the currentstatus of the associated IPM as reported to the power manager. If theIPM is working correctly, this filed will display “Normal”. If the powermanager is unable to communicate with the associated IPM this field willdisplay “No Rspns”. If the IPM is set to “On” and the power managerdetects the associated IPM is not on, this field will display “OnSFail”, e.g., for On Sense Failure. If the IPM is set to “Off” and thepower manager detects the associated IPM is on, this field will display“Off Fail”. Note that power managers equipped with these “ON SENSE” IPMscan be configured to generate SNMP traps when On Sense errors aredetected.

The Device Load is an informational field that displays the amount ofcurrent in Amps that is flowing through the associated IPM. This fieldis significant if the power manager is equipped with the ServerTechnology “LOAD SENSE” IPMs that are capable of sensing the load goingthrough the IPM and relaying this information to the power manager. Ifthe power manager is not equipped with these “LOAD SENSE” IPMs thisfield has no meaning and ““N”/A” is displayed. This field will displaythe current in Amps when current is flowing. If the associated IPM isset to off and no current is flowing (this is the normal case), thefield will display “Not On”. Power managers equipped with “LOAD SENSE”IPMs can be configured to generate SMMP traps when load sense valuesfall outside a user configurable range.

The Minimum-On Time is the minimum amount of time that an IPM will stayon before it can be turned off by actions at the power manager commandprompt. Manual actions in the Power Control Screen On or Off fields,however, are always immediate, ignoring this value. The default is 0.

The Minimum-Off Time is the minimum amount of time that an IPM will stayoff before it can be turned on by actions at the power manager commandprompt. Manual actions in the Power Control Screen On or Off fields,however, are always immediate, ignoring this value, except in the caseof a reboot. This field determines the off delay time of a reboot, ifgreater than 15 seconds. The default is 0.

The Shutdown Delay is the amount of time the power manager will delaywhen a Power Off command is issued for an IPM before the IPM is actuallyset to the Power Off state. This delay is designed to allow a Power Offsignal to be sent to an operating system on a machine that is attachedto the IPM. Pressing the space bar when positioned to this field changesthis value. The value can be set from “Disabled” (e.g., no delay) to aseries of choices ranging up to an eight-minute delay. Please refer tothe power manager Shutdown and Windows-NT UPS Service Configurationsection of this manual for information on configuring automaticoperating system shutdown.

The Wake-Up State is the state that the IPM will be in when controllerpower is turned on or when controller power is restored after a poweroutage. The options are ON and OFF. The default is ON.

The Group field takes an eight character group identifier. All IPMs withthe same group name can be acted upon simultaneously by command lineactions (ON, OFF, and REBOOT). The group field can be left blank so thatan IPM is not part of a group.

The Access field allows changing the access to the associated IPM forthe three default usernames. If a user is using more that the threedefault usernames on his system, access must be set via ausername/password administration commands described earlier in thismanual. With this field access can be granted to all three defaultusernames by setting the “ALL” value. To limit access to the admnusername the field is set to “Admn”. To limit access to the admn andgen1 usernames the field is set to “Gen1”. To limit access to the admnand gen2 usernames the field is set to “Gen2”. This field can bemodified when logged in with the admn username. The admn username alwayshas access to all IPMS. The default is All.

The Page field is an eight character identifier to describe the currentscreen page, as a more descriptive alternative to the page numbering inthe upper-right-hand corner of the screen. This entry is used as aparameter to the SHOW command to display the Power Control Screen of aspecific set of four IPMs. If page names are entered, each page MUSThave a unique page name.

The temperature field displays the current temperature in degreesCelsius as detected by the temperature probe on the board if the boardis equipped with a temperature probe. If the power manager is notequipped with a temperature probe, this field has no meaning and ““N”/A”is displayed.

A session can be ended from either the command prompt or the PowerControl Screen,

From the command prompt, type QUIT and press Enter. From the PowerControl Screen, press ““Q””.

A session will automatically be terminated after 5 minutes ofinactivity. With a modem connection, the modem will automatically behung-up by the power manager lowering DTR to the modem, as well assending the attention and Hang-up strings to the modem, if they have notbeen disabled.

A session will also automatically end when CD or DSR go inactive intothe Modem port, which occurs when the modem is hung-up or thecommunication software is exited.

When a session is ended, a user is notified with the message, “Sessionended”. There is then a period of about fifteen seconds after a sessionis ended before another session can be started so the power manager canreinitialize the modem after a session is ended. If a modem is not usedand the modem initialization strings are turned off, the time betweensessions is about seven seconds.

A non-volatile RAM preferably stores all configurable power manageroptions, including the passwords, can be reset to factory defaults. Thisclears all a user-editable fields on the Power Control Screens andresets all the command-line configurable options to defaults, includingthe passwords.

Resetting to factory defaults can be done in two ways is a by anadministrative-level command at the power manager prompt, or by a Resetbutton press during power up. This second method is necessary if thepasswords are forgotten.

An administrative-level command reset is performed with the command,“SET CNFG ALL FACTORY”. This will reset all the power manager productsin a chain.

The button press during power up reset must be done on the first powermanager at the beginning of a chain. The reset is performed by pressingand holding down the Reset button while turning on power with the On/Offtoggle switch. Continue to hold down the Reset button for two secondsafter turning on the power, then let go.

This will reset the first power controller board in the power manager atthe beginning of a chain. The rest of the chain should then be reset bylogging in with the administrator username (e.g., admn), and thenissuing the administrative reset command shown above.

The network option of the power managers is implemented by an OEMversion of the MSS1 Micro Serial Server manufactured by Lantronix. Thisdevice is enclosed within the power manager case and provides theTelnet-to-asynchronous functionality that allows the power manager to beaccessed over a TCP/IP Ethernet network.

For purposes of this document, the MSS1 shall be considered part of thepower manager. References will be made to the power manager as anEthernet device, when, in actuality, it is the MSS1 inside the powermanager that provides the network functionality. The MSS1 will generallybe referred to as the power manager “NIC”.

Before the power manager can be accessed over a network, the NIC mustfirst be configured with an IP Address, Subnet Mask, and DefaultGateway. These instructions explain how to configure the networkparameters through either a Modem or Console connection.

Start a session with the power manager through either the Modem orConsole port. Start this session with a data rate of 9600.

At the “power manager:” prompt, issue the command “CONNECT NETWORK”.This should connect the session to the internal NIC's serial port anddisplay the message “Connection complete”.

Press enter multiple times. A version message from the NIC inside thepower manager Commander should be displayed, followed by a “Loginpassword>” prompt: ServerTech MSS1 Version STI3.6/1 (991214).

Type HELP at the “Local_(—)1>” prompt for assistance.

Enter the following default Login password: access <Enter>.

The password is case sensitive. A “Local_(—)1>” prompt should appear: Atthe “Local_(—)1>” command prompt of the NIC, issue the command: SETPRIVILEGED <Enter>.

This will log a user in as a privileged user. A “Password>” prompt willbe displayed, at which point a user must enter the following defaultprivileged password: system <Enter>.

The password is case sensitive. When the valid password is entered thecommand prompt will change to “Local_(—)1>>” (two greater than signs),indicating a user are in a privileged user mode.

From the privileged command prompt, enter the command: CHANGE IPADDRESSxxx.xxx.xxx.xxx <Enter>, where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP address that auser want to assign to the power manager Commander. This command storesthe IP address in the memory of the power manager Commander NAD.

Issue the command: SHOW SERVER <Enter>, on the screen displayed, verifythe information entered in the above steps is correct. If the “TCP/IPGateway:” entry is “(undefined)”, or the “Subnet Mask:” is incorrect forthe network, a user should also issue the following commands: CHANGEGATEWAY xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx <Enter>; and/or, CHANGE SUBNET MASKxxx.xxx.xxx.xxx <Enter>, where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the appropriate IPaddress(es). Once a user has finished network configuration, issue thecommands: SHOW SERVER <enter>, SHOW PORT <enter>, to verify theinformation entered in the above commands. When finished, issue thecommand: INIT DELAY 0 <enter>, to logout and re-initialize the NIC inthe power manager with the new settings. Wait one minute for the NIC tore-initialize.

Break the connection to the NIC by typing the string sequence “!*LOGIN”followed by Enter. Log back into the power manager and QUIT.Additionally the connection will break when the modem is hung up, or thecable is disconnected from the Modem or Console port, or power is cycledto the power manager.

For other methods of configuring the NIC TCP/IP parameters, refer to theLantronix web site at www.lantronix.com.

To start a power manager session via the TCP/IP NIC, a user must connecta Telnet session to the IP address of the power manager using Port 2001.This is done with the command: telnet xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx 2001<Enter>, wherexxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP address that was assigned to the powermanager.

Once the telnet connection is established, a user will be presented withthe standard power manager Login prompt. If the “Username” prompt is notpresented, press the Enter key for one second and then release. Thissends a series of carriage returns that will start the power managersession.

It is possible to change the telnet port used to connect to the powermanager via the NIC. By default a telnet connection to the defaulttelnet port connects users to the NIC console. This allows users toenter commands to configure and view the settings of the NIC. To connectto the power manager, users connect to telnet port 2001. It is possibleto change the telnet port to cause the default telnet port to connect tothe power manager rather than to the NIC console. To change theconnection for the default telnet port, a user must connect to the NICconsole and use the change TELN=EST command. The command is restrictedto privileged users.

CHANGE TELNETDEST {Console|Serial} parameters specify either Console orSerial where, Console causes Telnet Port connections to connect to theNIC console.

Serial causes Telnet Port connections to connect directly to the serialport (just as if they connected to Telnet Port 2001).

If the CHANGE TELNETDEST command is used to change the default Telnetconnection to the serial port and then a user wish to change the defaultback to the NIC console a user must connect to Telnet Port 7000. Thisconnection results in a “#” prompt from the NIC. Respond to this promptwith the default login password (e.g., access) to begin a session withthe NIC console. A user can then use the CHANGE TELNETDEST command tochange the Telnet default port back to the console.

An inactivity timeout is not enforced when both connecting to a powermanager and using a serial pass through port to connect to anotherdevice. The NIC inactivity timeout remains in effect. If users wish todisable or modify the NIC inactivity timeout, there are two NIC consolecommands available for this purpose. The first is the CHANGE INACTIVELOGOUT command. This command is used to enable or disable the inactivitytimeout. This command requires privileged user status as describedpreviously. The format of the command is as follows: CHANGE INACTIVELOGOUT {Enabled |Disabled}.

Use the Disabled parameter to disable the inactive logout timer. Use theEnabled parameter to enable the inactive logout timer.

To change the length of the inactive timer use the CHANGE INACTIVE TIMERcommand. This command requires privileged user status as describedpreviously. The format of the command is as follows: CHANGE INACTIVETIMER {XXs |YYYm}.

The parameter is specified either in seconds (five to sixty) or inminutes (one to one hundred twenty). For seconds add an “s” after thenumber. For minutes add an “m” after the number. The default value isthirty minutes.

Support for encrypted Telnet connections with the NIC is possible.Connections can be made from a Win32 PC to the NIC. Win32 connectionsare established, e.g., using a Lantronix-supplied Telnet application.

For Win32 to NIC encrypted logins Lantronix provides the TCPSCRAM.EXEutility program. This program allows a user on a Win32 platform to forman encrypted connection to a power manager NIC.

The target NIC must be configured with the encryption password. Use thecommand: CRYPT PASSWORD “xxxxxxx”.

Note that the password can be up to seven alphanumeric characters and iscase sensitive. After entering the encryption password, the unit must berebooted.

To create a connection run the program TCPSCRAM.EXE. In the fieldsprovided specify the IP address of the NIC, the Telnet port to be usedfor the connection, and the encryption password. Note that the passwordspecified in the application must match the password (case sensitive)configured on the MSS itself.

The TCPSCRAM program will then form a connection to the power managerand all data passed between the PC and the power manager will beencrypted. The TCPSCRAM.EXE file is possible on the Lantronix FTP serverin the ./priv/misc_tools/tcpscram directory.

Units that support encrypted connections support a key size of fifty-sixbits.

For more information on the commands described in this section, and/orto view the complete MSS1 manual and support files see the Lantronix WWWpage at http://www.lantronix.com.

The power manager (with the NIC option) supports the Simple NetworkManagement Protocol (SNMP). For a complete description of the powermanager SNMP support please refer to the power manager SNMP Supportsection of this manual. If SNMP support is required, the followingsection describes the commands that must be issued on the NIC (e.g., theMSS1—all commands require privileged access).

Login to the MSS1 as described in the previous section or by connectingvia Telnet to the port 23 rather than port 2001. Once connected enterprivileged mode as described in the previous section. The currentsettings can be viewed with the command: SHOW PWR-MGR.

The power manager SNMP support is enabled and disabled in the MSS1 withthe command: PWR-MGR SNMP {ENABLED|DISABLED}.

The default is “DISABLED” The power manager SNMP support must be enabledfor access to Sentry2 MIB objects and for the generation of all Sentry2traps.

The power manager SNMP MSS1-to-power manager session timeout isconfigured with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP TIMEOUT {5 . . 55}.

Valid entries are between 5 and 55, which represents the session timeoutin seconds. The default is 15 seconds.

When the MSS1 receives a GET/SET SNMP request that requirescommunication to the power manager controller board(s), the MSS1 opens aserial session with the power manager, during which time other accesspaths (Modem, Console, Telnet) cannot establish a session with the powermanager. The timeout setting controls how long the MSS1-to-power managerSNMP serial session must be inactive (no longer needed for SNMP requestfulfillment) before the session is automatically closed, thus againallowing other access paths.

The power manager SNMP MSS1-to-power manager session speed is configuredwith the command: PWR-MGR SNMP SPEED data_rate. Valid entries are 300,1200, 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, and 38400.

When the MSS1 receives a GET/SET SNMP request that requirescommunication to the power manager controller board(s), the MSS1 opens aserial session with the power manager. During that session, the SPEEDcontrols the serial data rate that the power manager uses for returningresponses to query commands from the MSS1.

The power manager trap destination is defined in the MSS1 with thecommand: PWR-MGR SNMP TRAPDEST nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn, where nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn isthe IP Address of the SNMP management station that will receive alltraps. An entry of 0.0.0.0 clears the address, setting it to“(undefined)”. The default is “(undefined)”. The trap destination mustbe configured for traps to be generated.

The power manager trap community string is defined in the MSS with thecommand: PWR-MGR SNMP TRAPCOMM “string”, Default=“sentry-trap”. Thecommunity strings can be between one and fifteen characters. Byenclosing in double quotes, the case is preserved, otherwise it isconverted to all uppercase. An entry of “ ” clears the string. All trapsare sent with this trap community string. The trap community string mustbe configured for traps to be generated.

The power manager GET community string is defined in the MSS with thecommand: PWR-MGR SNMP GETCOMM “string”. The community strings can bebetween one and fifteen characters. By enclosing in double quotes, thecase is preserved, otherwise it is converted to all uppercase. An entryof “ ” clears the string.

GETCOMM is a string that will give access to the sentry2ChainGroupread-MIB objects. The use of this string will start a session with thepower manager. Default=“sentry”.

The power manager SET community string is defined in the MSS with thecommand: PWR-MGR SNMP SETCOMM “string”. The community strings can bebetween one and fifteen characters. By enclosing in double quotes, thecase is preserved, otherwise it is converted to all uppercase. An entryof “ ” clears the string.

SETCOMM is a string that will give access to the sentry2ChainGroupread-MIB objects and the read-write sentry2PortPowerAction MIB object.The use of this string will start a session with the power manager.Default=“ ”. The SETCOMM community string must be configured for powercontrol operations to succeed.

The power manager GET community string for extended power manager errorinformation is defined in the MSS with the command: PWR-MGR SNMP ERRCOMM“string”. The community strings can be between one and fifteencharacters. By enclosing in double quotes, the case is preserved,otherwise it is converted to all uppercase. An entry of “ ” clears thestring.

ERRCOMM is a string that will give access to the sentry2ErrorGroupread-MIB objects. The use of this string will NOT start a session withthe power manager. Default=“sentry-error”.

None of the power manager community strings should be set to “public”.This is because “public” is the fixed GET community string for theMSS1's native SNMP support for MIB I, MIB II, and RS232 MIB objects.

When finished, issue the command: SHOW PWR-MGR <enter>. To verify thesettings a user has entered are correct, then issue the command: INITDELAY 0<enter>. To logout and re-initialize the NIC in the power managerwith the new settings. Wait one minute for the NIC to re-initialize.

For more information on the commands described in this section, and/orto view the complete MSS1 manual and support files see the Lantronix WWWpage at http://www.lantronix.com.

If TACACS support is required, the following section describes thecommands that must be issued on the NIC (e.g., the MSS1—all commandsrequire privileged access).

Login to the MSS1 as described in the previous section or by connectingvia Telnet to port 23 rather than port 2001. Once connected enterprivileged mode as described in the previous section. The currentsettings can be viewed with the command: SHOW PWR-MGR.

The power manager TACACS support is enabled and disabled in the MSS1 bysetting the TACACS IP address and defining the TACACS key. TACACSsupport is compatible with TACACS Plus servers. To set the TACACS Plusserver IP address issue the following command: PWR-MGR TACACS SERVERnnn.nnn.nnn.nnn, where nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn is the IP Address of the TACACSPLUS server that will authenticate telenet connection to the powermanager.

The power manager TACACS Plus key string is defined in the MSS with thecommand: PWR-MGR TACACS KEY “string”. The key string should be enclosedin double quotes to ensure the case is preserved. Since the key does notecho it is important to be sure the key is specified correctly with casebeing significant. The key must match the key specified on the TACACSPLUS server.

Setting the TACACS KEY to any value activates TACACS PLUSauthentication. Clearing the TACACS KEY by entering a null string indouble quotes (e.g., “ ”) disables TACACS PLUS authentication.

Once a user has enabled TACACS PLUS authentication and rebooted the MSS1a user will not be able to telnet to the power manager withoutsuccessfully completing TACACS PLUS authentication. If a user enter aninvalid key, a user will be unable to access the power manager withoutreloading the MSS1. If the TACACS PLUS server is unavailable a user willnot be able to access the power manager via telnet.

When finished, a user issues the command: SHOW PWR-MGR <enter>.

To verify the settings a user has entered are correct, then issue thecommand: INIT DELAY 0<enter>. To logout and re-initialize the NIC in thepower manager with the new settings. Wait one minute for the NIC tore-initialize.

SecurID support is possible with the power manager NIC. The MSS1 withSecurID version string is STI3.5/5+(981103)”. SecurID is not enabled bydefault. It is enabled and configured by several privileged-level MSS1commands.

Prior to enabling SecurID, the power manager unit should be entirelyconfigured and operational. A user must also already be familiar withhow to log into the MSS1 and how to set privileged-user mode.

These instructions also assume thorough understanding of the ACE/Serverconfiguration items and processes.

There are six configurable SecurID parameters: the primary ACE/Server IPaddress, the secondary (backup) ACE/Server IP address, the SecurIDauthentication request timeout, the maximum number of authenticationrequest retries, the encryption method, and the SecurID port (TCP/IPsocket number).

The current SecurID parameter settings can be displayed by the MSS1privileged-level command: SHOW PWR-MGR. SecurID is enabled if either theprimary or secondary ACE/Server IP Addresses is defined. This is donewith the MSS1 privileged-level command: PWR-MGR SECURID{PRIMARY|SECONDARY} {ipaddress|NONE}, where ipaddress is in decimalnumerical form. NONE removes the ipaddress definition. Changing anACE/Server IP Address clears the MSS1's Node Secret. The other MSS1SecurID commands are: PWR-MGR SECURID TIMEOUT n, where n is the numberof seconds between authentication request retries. Default=3.

PWR-MGR SECURID MAXRETRY n, where n is the maximum number ofauthentication request retries. Default=5.

PWR-MGR SECURID ENCRYPTION {SID|DES}, where SID or DES selects theencryption method. Default=DES. This must match the client configurationon the ACE/Server. new ACE/Server versions renamed the SID encryption toSDI.

PWR-MGR SECURID PORT nnnnn, where nnnnn is the SecurID authenticationsocket number. Default=5500. This must match the port configured on theACE/Server.

PWR-MGR SECURID FACTORY resets all the SecurID configuration parametersto their factory defaults.

In the ACE/Server Database Administration, create and configure an MSS1client, selecting “Communication Server” as the Client Type. The MSS1can do multiple transactions and therefore can display the NextTokencode and New PIN prompts.

When SecurID is enabled, the standard MSS1 password protection isredundant, and a user will probably want to turn it off. A user canleave it on if a user want, in which case a user will first be promptedfor the MSS1 login password, and then, after a successful entry, will beprompted for the SecurID username/passcode. To turn off the standardMSS1 password protection, use the privileged-level MSS1 commands,

-   -   CHANGE PASSWORD PROTECT DISABLED    -   CHANGE INCOMING NOPASSWORD    -   CHANGE PASSWORD INCOMING DISABLED

Security Enabling SecurID does not affect power manager SNMP support forcontrolling power. power manager SNMP support defaults to DISABLED, soit is an issue if it is enabled. The “SHOW PWR-MGR” command will displaythe current power manager SNMP status.

The power manager NIC supports two passwords—a Privileged password and aLogin password. The Privileged password is used to become the privilegeduser (administrator), which is required to change settings of the NIC.This password was used in the previous two procedures with the SET PRIVcommand. The NIC defaults to not using the Login password, but can beconfigured to require the Login password when logging on (beforeentering a user name) and/or to establish a Telnet session using Port2001 to begin a power control session with the power manager.

The default Privileged password is “system”, which is changed with theCHANGE PRIVPASS command. The default Login password is “access”, whichis changed with the CHANGE LOGINPASS command. Both passwords can be madeup of up to six case-sensitive alphanumeric characters. Changing eitherpassword requires privileged user status.

To configure the NIC to require the Login password when logging in, usethe CHANGE INCOMING PASSWORD command. To not require the Login passwordwhen logging in, use the CHANGE INCOMING NOPASSWORD command.

To configure the NIC to require the Login password when starting aTelnet session to port 2001, use the CHANGE PASSWORD INCOMING ENABLEDcommand. To configure the NIC to not require the Login password whenstarting a Telnet session to port 2001, use the CHANGE PASSWORD INCOMINGDISABLED command.

The power manager NIC also supports an IP Security option that a usermay wish to implement. IP security allows the system administrator torestrict incoming and outgoing TCP/IP sessions and access to the serialport. Connections are allowed or denied based upon the source IP addressfor incoming connections and the destination IP address for outgoingconnections.

IP security information can be added to the IP local host table usingthe CHANGE IPSECURITY command. Specify an address in standard numericformat. An address with 0 or 255 in any segment restricts all addressesin that range.

To add an entry, specify an IP address and whether to allow or denyconnections. The following exemplary command disables connections forall addresses between 192.0.1.1 and 192.0.1.254.

The following example disables the address 192.0.220.77: CHANGEIPSECURITY 192.0.220.77 DISABLED.

The CHANGE IPSECURITY command requires privileged user status.

In order to view the host table entries, the user must enter a SHOWIPSECURITY command. To remove an entry, the DELETE IPSECURITY command isfollowed by the IP address that the user wants to remove.

The power manager (with the network option) supports the Simple NetworkManagement Protocol (SNMP). This allows a network management system touse SNMP “get” and “set” requests to retrieve information about, andcontrol power to, the individual ports on the power manager. Properlyimplemented and integrated, this feature could allow a networkmanagement system to automatically reboot a network device that it hasdetected to be down or locked-up.

The ServerTech MSS1 includes an SNMP v1 agent that supports the standardMIB I, MIB II, and RS-232 MIB objects. Additionally, the ServerTech MSS1and the power manager together support a private enterprise MIBextension that provides remote power control via SNMP. This collectionof private enterprise MIB objects is called the power manager MIB.

The power manager MIB defines objects that allow a network manager tocheck the value of power manager configuration items, to check the powerstatus of individual ports on the power manager, and to control power tothe individual ports on the power manager. Power to a port can be turnedon, turned off, or rebooted. Ports with shutdown support willautomatically signal a shut down to the operating system of the attacheddevice prior to turning off or rebooting the device.

In addition to the power manager SNMP support for the query and actiontype operations that allow externally originated SNMP actions to bepassed to the power manager from an attached MSS1, power manager SNMPsupport includes power manager generated trap information. The trapinformation is collected at the power manager and then passed to anattached MSS1 where it is formatted for SNMP and then delivered to anexternal SNMP trap destination. The power manager MIB defines the trapobjects that are generated by the power manager. The power manager MIBand associated SNMP definitions can be obtained directly from ServerTechnology via their anonymous FTP site.

The power manager SNMP trap support is designed to recognize new trapconditions and transmit messages as soon as possible. To prevent networkcongestion, trap conditions that remain in a steady state, e.g., in acontinuing error condition, generate traps once a minute.

Traps can be transmitted when there is no active user session with thepower manager Chain. This means that if a power manager chain is beingused for connection via a side switch to a server and a user connectionsare frequent or are of long duration, traps messages will be delayed.Use of a power manager chain for trap monitoring and for frequent orlong duration user sessions is possible but may not be desirable.

Multiple trap conditions may occur with a single trap messageindication. For example, a trap message is sent for each change of stateof a power module. If a user logs on and turns a single port on and offseveral times, a single trap message will be generated after a user logsoff. As another example, if a temperature limit is exceeded then returnsto normal and then is exceeded again during an active user session, asingle trap message will be generated after a user logs off indicatingthe current state of the temperature trap.

There are five activities that are monitored by the power manager inorder to generate SNMP traps. Each of these activities and the trapsthey generate are described in the sections.

Each board in a chain can have a single temperature probe that measuresthe current temperature at the probe in degrees Celsius. For each boardhigh and low temperature limits can be set. When these limits areexceeded, an SNMP trap will be generated. When the temperature returnsto the normal range another SNMP trap is generated, e.g., a temperaturewithin the high and low limits as specified by a user. When thetemperature first exceeds the specified limits, a trap is generated assoon as possible. Once the first trap is generated, the trap becomes asteady state trap. A new trap will be generated every one minute when asteady state temperature trap occurs until the temperature returns tothe normal range and remains in the normal range for one steady statetrap timer period.

For illustration, a temperature high limit is set at 100° Celsius and alow limit is set at 80° Celsius. If the temperature rises to 101°, atrap is generated and a steady state timer is set. During the steadystate timer period, the temperature falls to 99° and then rises back to100°. When the timer expires, a second temperature too trap is generatedand the timer is set once again. During this timer period thetemperature falls below 100° and stays there until the timer expires.When the timer expires, a temperature normal trap is generated and thetimer is not set. The temperature trap is no longer in a steady stateand a new trap will be generated whenever the temperature once againfalls outside the limits. There are three possible temperature trapsthat can be generated, too high, too low, and normal range. All of thetraps include the current temperature value, e.g., as sensed by theboard-temperature probe.

When a user enables the Start Up Trap, the board generates an SNMP trapwhenever the board is reset. Even if the trap is enabled on all boardsin a chain, the first board will generate a start up trap when reset.

When a user enables the Control status Change Trap for an IPM on aboard, an SNMP trap is generated whenever the control value of the IPMis changed. If multiple control status change events occur during aperiod when it is not possible for the power manager to send traps, asingle trap will be generated indicating the last control status value.

As an example, a user has activated Control Status Change Traps for allports on all boards in the power manager chain. A user logs on to thepower manager and uses the “ON” command to turn on several ports. Whilea user is logged on to an active session, traps are not sent so all ofthe ports that were turned on have pending Control Status Change Traps.During this same session a user realizes he has made a mistake and wantsto start over, so he uses the “OFF” command to turn all ports in thepower manager chain off. A user then uses the “ON” command to turn onthe single port he whishes to leave in the “ON” state. A user then logsoff the system. After a user logs off, there will be a single SNMP trapgenerated for all of the ports in the system. Each trap will indicatethe current control status of the port. There will be a single trap forall ports even though several of the ports have had more than onecontrol status change.

When a user enables the Module Status Error Trap for an IPM on a board,and SNMP trap is generated whenever an error condition occurs on an IPMand another SNMP trap is generated when the error condition is ended andthe IPM returns to a normal status. Like the temperature limits exceededtrap, a steady state condition timer is set after the initial trap andsubsequent traps are generated on a timer expired basis until the modulereturns to the normal state and remains in the normal state for a timerperiod.

The four Module Status states that an IPM may have are, Normal is a theIPM is functioning normally; No Response is a the power manager isunable to communicate with the IPM; On Failure is a the IPM is set toON, but there is no power on the output side of the relay; and, OffFailure is a the IPM is set to OFF, but there is power on the outputside of the relay.

Each of the IPMs attached to a board may have the ability to sense thepower load flowing through the IPM. For each IPM on a board high and lowDevice Load limits can be set. When these Device Load limits areexceeded, an SNMP trap will be generated. When the Device Load returnsto the normal range (e.g., within the high and low limits as specifiedby a user), another SNMP trap is generated. When the Device Load firstexceeds the specified limits, a trap is generated as soon as possible.Like the temperature limits exceeded trap and the Module Status ErrorTrap, a steady state condition timer is set after the initial trap andsubsequent traps are generated on a timer expired basis until the DeviceLoad returns to the normal state and remains in the normal state for atimer period.

There are three possible Device Load traps that can be generated, deviceload too high, too low, and normal range. All of traps include a currentDevice Load value as indicated by the IPM.

Windows-NT must be shut down prior to turning off power. When a user isat the computer, a user can manually do the necessary shutdown. However,if the Windows-NT system is used as an unattended or remotemission-critical server, no one will be present at the computer to do ashutdown prior to a remote power off or reboot action.

The power manager embodiments preferably provide a Shut Downnotification for each system controlled by an individual IntelligentPower Module. When the Shut Down notification feature is installed, thepower manager will automatically send a Shut Down signal to theoperating system whenever an IPM is instructed to power off or reboot. Auser defined “Shutdown Delay” timer decrements as the shutdown signal isasserted. This delay allows the operating system time to shut down thesystem in an orderly manner. When the delay time expires, power isimmediately turned off. The length of the power manager “Shutdown Delay”is determined by the “Shutdown Delay” field on the power manager PowerControl Screen as described earlier in this manual.

The mechanism for attaching the power manager to the Windows-NT systemdepends on the specific power manager hardware model a user haspurchased. Please refer to the power manager Installation and Setupmanual that is included with the power manager for details on connectingthe power manager to the Windows-NT system.

Windows-NT provides a UPS Service to monitor a serial port for theshutdown signal, and to provide the operating system shutdown when thesignal is asserted.

Configuring the Windows-NT UPS Service for use with the power managerincludes setting the service to automatically startup when Windows-NTloads, and entering the proper COM port and operating parameters of thepower manager. The “Services” and “UPS” icons in the Control Panel ofWindows-NT are used for this. The “Expected Battery Life” must be lessthan the “Shutdown Delay” time configured on the power manager PowerControl, otherwise, power may be turned off before the Windows-NT systemhas completed the shutdown.

When set for two minutes, the Windows-NT system will start to shutdownimmediately when the power manager signals it to. There is no “grace”time or initial warning messages. There is a final shutdown message andthen the actual shutdown. For this reason, a user may need to increasethe “Expected Battery Life” on the Windows-NT UPS configuration screenand the “Shutdown Delay” on the power manager Power Control Screen.Every minute above two minutes will be time that Windows-NT willbroadcast and display warning messages about the impending shutdown,before starting the final shutdown. This gives users time to finish andsave their working before the shutdown occurs.

When Windows-NT boots, a user is expected to press <Ctrl><Alt><Del> tobring up a dialog box for login with user name and password. This canpose a problem for remote booting and logon since a user is not at thesystem to press the keys.

Fortunately, Windows-NT supports an automatic log-on feature to allowthe system to automatically logon with a default user name, defaultpassword, and default domain name. Instructions for enabling thisAutomatic log-on feature can be obtained from Microsoft, e.g.,http://www.microsoft.com/kb/articles/q97/5/97.htm, Article ID #: Q97597,Title: “How to Enable Automatic log-on in Windows-NT”.

The following Table X is an example of an MIB source-text extension thatcan be supplied to users to load on their power manager workstations.

Under the DESCRIPTION section above, the second revision is described asadding high, low, and normal traps in the SNMP repertoire. The“Sentry2BoardEntry ::=SEQUENCE” paragraph has added to it the“sentry2BoardInputLoad DisplayString” entry. A current valuerepresenting the sum of all currents in a power module is enabled with aparagraph, “sentry2BoardInputLoad OBJECT-TYPE”. Under the“Notifications” section, e.g., traps, the paragraph that implement thehigh-error, low-error, and return-to-normal are,“sentry2BoardInputLoadHighError NOTIFICATION-TYPE”,“sentry2BoardInputLoadLowError NOTIFICATION-TYPE”, and“sentry2BoardInputLoadNormal NOTIFICATION-TYPE”.

Although the present invention has been described in terms of thepresent embodiment, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not tobe interpreted as limiting. Various alterations and modifications willno doubt become apparent to those skilled in the art after having readthe above disclosure. Accordingly, it is intended that the appendedclaims be interpreted as covering all alterations and modifications asfall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

1. A power manager system, comprising: a network interface controller(NIC) for providing a physical interface to a TCP/IP-type computer datanetwork and for sending and receiving datapackets according to a localIP-address; a network client providing for status reporting andcommanding by a remote management workstation connected to saidTCP/IP-type computer data network according to a remote IP-address; anda power controller for encoding said datapackets with informationobtained from a power sensor input, and for decoding said datapacketshaving information for directing a relay control output; wherein, saidrelay control output provides for power-cycling of a computer-basedappliance that is subject to software lock-up and requires an occasionalpower-on reset; and wherein, said power sensor input provides at leastone of a operating-power voltage measurement and current measurement forsaid computer-based appliance.
 2. The power manager system of claim 1,wherein: the network client comprises at least one of an http client, aTelnet client, and an SNMP client.
 3. The power manager system of claim2, further comprising: a remote management workstation connected to saidTCP/IP-type computer data network and having a remote IP-address thatcommunicates said datapackets between it and said local IP-address. 4.The power manager system of claim 3, wherein: the remote managementworkstation comprises at least one of an http browser application, aTelnet application, and an SNMP application program each able to commandthe network client.
 5. The power manager system of claim 1, wherein: thenetwork client comprises an SNMP client and provides for issuance oftrap messages in said datapackets that announce an event detected atsaid power sensor input.
 6. A network power control system, comprising:a host system with a network manager and providing for a networkcommunication connection; a plurality of intelligent power modules(IPM's) connected to a power supply and providing at least one ofpower-on sensing, load sensing and power cycling on/off, and furtherincluding a “tickle” signal issued by a system administrator and thehost system; a plurality of computer-based appliances connected toreceive operating power from a corresponding one of said IPMs such thateach IPM may cycle operating power on/off in response a command issuedby a system administrator and the host system; and a power manager witha network agent connected to said network communication connection andable to individually control each IPM according to receipt of saidcommands; wherein a user may confirm that a particular intelligent powermodule will respond to a command to affect power with said first commandbefore said second command is issued to actually affect operating powerto a particular one of the computer-based appliances.
 7. The powercontrol system of claim 6, wherein: each of the plurality of IPMs has afirst output port to issue said “tickle” signal and a second output portto control said operating power to an associated computer-basedappliances.
 8. The power control system of claim 7, wherein: said“tickle” signal controls the logic status of a serial interface includedin said associated computer-based appliances.
 9. The power controlsystem of claim 7, wherein: said “tickle” signal is tested while saidassociated computer-based appliances is in a normal operating mode byissuing said first command.
 10. The power control system of claim 7,wherein: said second command is issued when said associated networkappliance is in an abnormal operating mode and cannot respond to said“tickle” signal.
 11. A network power control system, comprising: aplurality of intelligent power modules (IPM's) for connection to acommon power supply, and providing independent on/off control of acorresponding plurality of individual power outlets according tocommands issued by a system administrator from a host system; a networkagent providing for a plurality of user configuration choices regardingcontrol of the plurality of IPM's, and able to communicate with saidhost system over a network; a power manager connected between theplurality of IPM's and the network agent, and providing for atranslation of said commands received by the network agent into actionsaffecting power delivery by the IPM's to said corresponding plurality ofindividual power outlets; and a data storage device connected to thepower manager and providing for upload and download of said plurality ofuser configuration choices, wherein said system administer can berelieved of manually entering each configuration choice at said hostsystem.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein: a user may confirm that aparticular IPM will respond to a command to affect power with a firstcommand before a second command is issued to actually affect operatingpower.
 13. The system of claim 11, further comprising: a network managerhaving a network communication connection and for providing a display ofuser configuration choices and an input to choose amongst them.
 14. Thesystem of claim 11, further comprising: a plurality of computer-basedappliances connected to receive operating power from said plurality ofindividual power outlets such that each IPM is enabled to cycleoperating power on/off in response a command issued by a systemadministrator and the host system.